Foxconn: iPhone maker sees revenue slump as demand weakens - BBC

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Employees work on the assembly line at Hon Hai Group's Foxconn plant in Shenzhen, China.

By Annabelle Liang

Business reporter

Apple's biggest supplier Foxconn says its revenue last month fell by 11.65% compared to the same period in 2022 due to weaker demand for electronics.

However, February revenue was more than $13bn (£10.8bn), the second highest figure on record for the month.

Foxconn added that operations at the world's biggest iPhone factory in the Chinese city of Zhengzhou are recovering from Covid disruptions.

Also over the weekend the firm said it was exploring opportunities in India.

Foxconn said in a statement on Sunday that revenue from computing, smart consumer electronics and cloud and networking products declined in February from a year earlier "due to conservative customers' pull-in".

"Based on the revenue performance in the first two months, the outlook for first quarter 2023 is roughly in line with market expectation," the company added.

In November, Apple warned that shipments of its new iPhone 14 would be delayed after Chinese officials locked down a district in Zhengzhou where Foxconn's mega-factory is located.

Two weeks later protests erupted at the plant, which disrupted manufacturing as thousands of workers left production lines.

Last month, Foxconn said its revenue in January had jumped by 48.2% from a year earlier to hit a record high, as manufacturing in Zhengzhou returned to pre-pandemic levels.

Separately, at the weekend Foxconn responded to reports that it had agreed to significantly expand its operations in India, after its chairman and chief executive Young Liu visited the country last week.

Media outlets reported that the firm planned to invest up to to $1bn in a major iPhone plant in Bengaluru. There were also reports that Foxconn's investment in India would create around 100,000 jobs.

The BBC understands that the company did not enter any binding new agreements during the trip.

Foxconn also did not include the reported figures in its statement on Saturday.

"Foxconn will continue to communicate with local governments to seek the most beneficial development opportunities for the company and all stakeholders," Mr Liu said.

iPhones are currently assembled in India by several Apple suppliers, including Foxconn.

The Taiwan-headquartered company, which is known formally as Hon Hai Precision Industry, assembles the devices at a site in Tamil Nadu.