Foxconn is facing a difficult situation with the new wave of the coronavirus pandemic in China and employee strikes that could reduce the production of iPhones by 6 million by the end of 2023. Now analyst Ming-Chi Kuo reports that Apple already has plans to end Foxconn’s exclusivity for the iPhone 15 line.
Kuo’s report states that Apple may choose to hire more manufacturers to meet demand for the next generation iPhone, as Foxconn may face such problems in late 2022.
In addition to facing the challenge of lower-than-expected iPhone shipments/revenue in 4Q22, it will also be difficult for Hon Hai to continue to be the exclusive assembler of the iPhone 15 Pro series as Apple wants to diversify and reduce supply risks.
In this way, Apple does not want to run the risk of ceasing to sell iPhones for simply not having what to put on store shelves, after all, demand right after launch is crucial to keep the market warm and increase sales revenue.
Speaking of the current moment, Kuo says that Pegatron and Luxshare may be responsible for 10% of iPhone 14 Pro and 14 Pro Max shipments this year-end, but new batches should only be delivered at the end of December, which would not solve Apple’s problem in time.
Thus, it is believed that Pegatron and Luxshare are already planning to expand their facilities to fulfill additional orders for iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Ultra in 2023, as Foxconn still has its largest factory located in Zhengzhou, being responsible for 70% of iPhones sold worldwide.
