SAN FRANCISCO: Apple is unlikely to meet production goals for its new iPhone before the holidays because of a global electronic chip shortage.
According to a foreign media report by Bloomberg News, the firm had planned to produce 90 million iPhone 13s before the end of the year, but will have to settle with 80 million as suppliers Broadcom and Texas Instruments cannot meet demand.
Apple presented a new line of iPhones last month, with four new models, including the iPhone 13 Mini, which sells from $700, and the iPhone 13 Pro Max, which costs $1,100.
“We estimate that overall demand has been robust globally,” Wedbush analyst Dan Ives said, highlighting strong demand in China and the United States especially.
“Apple will be running into a 5 million-plus iPhone 13 unit shortage for the holiday season if consumer demand keeps up at this pace,” he added.
Chief executive Tim Cook warned during quarterly earnings reports in late July that supply chain constraints would have an even bigger impact on the current quarter than it had in the previous three months.
He pointed out that electronic chip shortages were affecting all parts of the industry, not just Apple, and stemmed from significantly higher-than-expected demand.
