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Foxconn says iPhone manufacturing unit not impacted

Vehicles are stranded in floodwater near Zhengzhou Railway Station on July 20, 2021 in Zhengzhou, Henan Province of China.

Zhu Zhe | Visual China Group | Getty Images

GUANGZHOU, China — Taiwan electronics manufacturer Foxconn said Wednesday that its factory in Zhengzhou — known as the world’s largest iPhone assembly plant — has not been impacted by major flooding in the city.

Zhengzhou in China’s central Henan province has been hit with torrential rain. Authorities said it rained more in an hour on Tuesday than it normally would in an average month.

The result has been intense flooding in the city of more than 10 million people. Over 100,000 people have been relocated to safety and 12 people have died, according to state media reports.

Zhengzhou, an important industrial hub, is home to a major factory run by Hon Hai Precision Industry, also known a Foxconn. It is the biggest assembly plant for Apple’s iPhones in the world. Foxconn said its operations had not been affected by the flooding.

Foxconn told CNBC that it had “activated an emergency response plan for flood control measures in that location.”

“We can confirm that there has been no direct impact on our facility in that location to date and we are closely monitoring the situation and will provide any updates as appropriate,” a company spokesperson added.

Apple did not respond to a request for comment.

‘Extremely severe’

Chinese President Xi Jinping called the flooding “extremely severe,” according to his comments published by the official Xinhua news agency.

Unverified videos circulating on Chinese social media such as Twitter-like service Weibo, showed people trapped on a train in Zhengzhou’s subway system submerged in water up to their chests.

Other images show cars floating in flooded streets.

Policemen evacuate traffic in floodwater near Zhengzhou Railway Station on July 20, 2021 in Zhengzhou, Henan Province of China.

Zhu Zhe | Visual China Group | Getty Images

Zhengzhou’s subway network has suspended its operations while hundreds of flights have been cancelled. The army has been called in to help with the rescue efforts.

Various state media reported stories of rescue efforts including 150 kindergarten teachers and students being successfully saved and people being taken off buses stuck in flooded roads.

State-backed newspaper Xinhua, citing the chief forecaster for Henan province’s meteorological station, said the heavy rainfall is expected to last until Wednesday evening.

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Business

Apple doubles its earnings on hovering iPhone gross sales.

Apple said Wednesday that its earnings more than doubled to $ 23.6 billion in its most recent quarter as people adopted its latest iPhones and bought more of its other products. This is an impressive result for what is already the world’s most valuable company.

According to Apple, sales rose 54 percent to $ 89.6 billion. That was a record for the March quarter, with Apple selling an average of more than $ 1 billion a day. The rapid growth is partly due to slower sales in the same three-month period last year when the pandemic first started. However, the quarter on its own was still strong and far exceeded analysts’ expectations. Apple’s sales grew sharply in each of its product categories and in each of its regions around the world.

As always, the main driver of Apple’s success was the iPhone. According to Apple, iPhone sales rose 66 percent to $ 47.9 billion. This is the biggest increase in years. The company’s flagship accounted for more than half of its total sales for years. More recently, however, Apple has been trying to expand into other businesses, causing the share of iPhone sales to drop to 41 percent for the quarter ending September 30th, Apple unveiled the iPhone 12 in October, and sales have increased . In the last quarter, iPhones made up 54 percent of Apple’s sales.

IPad sales increased 79 percent and Mac sales increased 70 percent, according to Apple. Part of its success was due to more people working on computers and learning from home. Sales of Apple wearable devices, including the Apple Watch and AirPods, rose 25 percent, and the Services division, which includes app sales and subscriptions to iCloud and other Apple services, rose 26 percent.

Apple said Wednesday that it would buy back an additional $ 90 billion of its own shares as part of its ongoing program to return much of its profits to shareholders.

The huge profits are further evidence of the growing dominance of the largest tech companies. Also announced this week: Microsoft’s profit rose 44 percent to $ 15.5 billion. Facebook’s bottom line nearly doubled to $ 9.5 billion. and profits at Alphabet, the parent company of Google, more than doubled to nearly $ 18 billion. Amazon reports its profits on Thursday.

Apple’s continued growth is based on an increasing scrutiny of its power. The company is facing antitrust investigations from regulators around the world. On Monday, Apple will stand trial against Epic Games, one of the world’s largest game manufacturers, to gain control of the App Store.

Apple shares, valued at roughly $ 2.25 trillion, rose nearly 2 percent in after-hours trading.

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Business

Apple exhibits off new gadgets and units launch date for disputed iPhone software program.

Apple on Tuesday unveiled a number of new products that show how the marketing pitch continues to focus on consumer privacy at other companies’ potential costs, while also entering new markets developed by much smaller competitors.

Apple showed off a new high-end iPad and iMac desktop computer based on new computer processors that Apple is now making itself. Apple announced it was redesigning its podcast app to allow podcast creators to bill for their shows. It also released a new device called AirTags, a $ 29 disc that attaches to a key ring or wallet to make it easier to find.

Apple also released some other news on Tuesday that wasn’t mentioned in its dazzling, hour-long advertisement. The company announced in a subsequent press release that it plans to release its much-anticipated iPhone software next week, which will come with a privacy feature that worries many digital advertising companies, especially Facebook.

This functionality requires apps to be given explicit permissions from users before they can be tracked across other apps. When you open a lot of apps next week, iPhone owners will be greeted with pop-up windows asking if the app can track them. Organizations are expected to collect less data on users as users decline this tracking.

Apple and Facebook were embroiled in a war of words over the change. Facebook argued that doing so would hurt the digital advertising industry, which helps fund free internet services. Apple has stated that it only gives consumers the right to choose whether to be tracked.

Separately on Tuesday, Apple’s AirTags were immediately criticized by Tile, a company that has been making similar lost item finding devices for years. “We welcome competition as long as it is fair competition. Unfortunately, given Apple’s well-documented history of using its platform advantage to unfairly restrict competition for its products, we are skeptical, “said CJ Prober, CEO of Tile.

Tile’s General Counsel, along with executives from Apple, Google, Spotify and Match Group, will testify before Congress Wednesday at a hearing on Apple and Google’s market power and control over mobile apps. “We think it is entirely appropriate that Congress takes a closer look at Apple’s business practices,” said Prober.

Categories
Business

Fisker shares surge on EV take care of Apple iPhone assembler Foxconn

The New York Stock Exchange welcomes Fisker Inc. (NYSE: FSR) to celebrate its recent IPO today, Monday, November 9, 2020.

Source: NYSE

Electric vehicle startup Fisker’s shares rose more than 20% on Wednesday morning after the company announced a manufacturing deal with Foxconn Technology Group.

The two companies have signed a memorandum of understanding for the Taiwan-based electronics contract maker, best known for assembling Apple iPhones and producing more than 250,000 units Electric vehicles per year for Fisker, according to a joint announcement by the companies on Wednesday.

Fisker, which went public through a reverse merger last year, has a market capitalization of $ 5.26 billion.

Assembly of the vehicle is expected to begin in the fourth quarter of 2023, according to the company. The officials gave few more details about the planned electric vehicle, except for a “new segment vehicle”.

“We will create a vehicle that transcends social boundaries, offers a combination of advanced technology, desirable design, innovation and value, while fulfilling our commitment to creating the most sustainable vehicles in the world,” said Henrik Fisker, CEO of Fisker. in a statement.

The companies announced that the deal, code-named Project PEAR (Personal Electric Automotive Revolution), is expected to close in the second quarter of this year. It would be Fisker’s second big deal in the past few months. The company has already signed a contract with auto supplier Magna to produce the Fisker Ocean, its first expected vehicle.

Magna and Fisker are expected to start production on the ocean in the fourth quarter of 2022. The ocean will initially be produced exclusively by Magna in Europe.