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iPhone increases US-China trade deficit by $2 billion
According to a report by a pair of economists out of the Asian Development Bank Institute, the success of Apple's iPhone plays a major role in contributing to the USA's trade deficit with China. The Wall Street Journal (login required) explains that while sales of the iPhone show around a $2 billion trade surplus with China on paper as of 2009, the actual figure is a lot less because the iPhone is only assembled in China, not designed there. While the wholesale price of an iPhone is $178.96, the value of the only truly "Chinese" part is assembly, valued at $6.50 per unit. But because the iPhone ships from inside China, the entire value gets added into the trade figures, thus showing the $2 billion trade surplus. If the numbers actually accounted for the true value coming out of China, the surplus for 2009 would have been about $73 million instead -- meaning that, in reality, there is an almost $2 billion trade deficit just from the iPhone alone. The report goes on to say that there are many variables at play when looking for the true trade deficit numbers, and lawmakers shouldn't make any trade rules based on such potentially incomplete data. With Apple sales on the rise and its net income following suit, and with Foxconn recently hiring 400,000 workers for its new plants in China, no one is saying that the trade figures between the two countries aren't vital to the economies of both. [via Business Insider]
Mac sales growth continues to surge ahead of PCs 3 to 1
In a pattern that has become very familiar to watchers of the computer market in the last few years, sales of Macs have grown at three times the rate of computers powered by other operating systems. According to a report issued by IDC, Apple computer sales jumped 28.5 percent in the July-September 2010 quarter compared to the same period in 2009. Sales of other personal computers only grew by 9.7% in the same period. The single biggest jump in sales has come from the business market, which is up by 66.3%. Among large and very large businesses, sales spiked 146% and 202% respectively, which is an excellent sign for Apple. Those large businesses tend to be controlled by large IT departments, which are typically very conservative when it comes to computer system upgrades and replacements. The popularity of iOS devices among executives and the more tech savvy is probably playing a big part in convincing these companies to take another look at Apple on the desktop. According to IDC's estimates of average selling prices, Apple is also now the dollar market share leader in the U.S. home market with 29.4% of all the dollars spent on computers in the period. However, this figure is open to debate based on IDC estimating a higher average transaction price than Apple's own results. Regardless of which revenue estimate is correct, it's clear that Apple is gaining a lot traction in every market except education where PCs outpaced Macs by 11.4% to 5.1%. Apple still has plenty of room to grow however, with only 4.36% of the global computer market. via Fortune
Apple TV hits 250,000 in sales, says Steve Jobs
Deep within the heart of Apple's fiscal earnings call Q&A session, straight from the mouth of CEO Steve Jobs: "I can report that we've sold a quarter million Apple TVs." Quite an impressive number for a device that's only been out for 18 days but by no means on par with the likes of some other Apple debuts (the iPad, for instance, sold 300,000 on day one). Still, not bad for the once (and possibly still) hobby.
NPD: Mac sales up 39 percent in January and Febuary as iPod sales rebound
Well, it looks like it's not just iPad pre-orders that are possibly be beating a few expectations -- according to NPD, sales of Macs and iPods were also up over some estimates in January and February. Citing the report, Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster says that sales of Macs were up 39% year over year for the two months (ahead of estimates of 22%), which should translate to sales of between 2.8 to 2.9 million Macs for the full quarter, while iPod sales were up 7% during the same period, suggesting total iPod sales of between nine and ten million for the first quarter. That latter number may actually be the more impressive of the two, as it marks the first time iPod sales have rebounded into positive territory in a full sixteen months -- although that trend could just as easily be reversed again if, say, Apple rolls out a new iPhone that cuts into iPod sales.
Report: Initial iPad demand greater than iPhone's
It's hard to forget the near mania that preceded the iPhone's US launch. New Yorkers began lining up to buy one four days in advance. David Pogue wrote a song about it. Things got out of hand. Now, according to RBC Capital Markets' Mike Abramsky, iPad demand is even higher. RBC recently conducted a survey of 3,200 people and found that 13% are likely to buy the US$499 iPad. Initial interest in the iPhone was at 9% prior to launch in 2007. Perceived value for the cost is probably the deciding factor. Remember, the original iPhone was also $499. The iPad has obvious differences like size, resolution, a huge existing library of 3rd party apps and 16GB of memory (the $499 iPhone had only 4GB of storage). The iPad is also contract-free, something the iPhone can't (officially) do in the US. What's most interesting is the number of people who said that the iPad is affecting other purchasing decisions. A full 25 percent of respondents said that they are delaying other Apple purchases as a result. Nine percent have put off buying a MacBook, and 10 percent have put off an iPhone. On a personal note, my parents just put off buying a MacBook until they get some hands-on time with an iPad at their local Apple Store. iPad pre-orders could begin as early as this week, but Apple doesn't release those numbers. However, this report and the fact that some Norweigan retailers had to halt pre-orders because of the overwhelming demand bodes well for initial iPad sales.
Mac sales growth continues, according to IDC numbers
Apple is really defying gravity in this economic slump with impressive numbers. Market research firm IDC reports Apple sold about 5.6 million computers here in the U.S. in 2009, giving it an 8% market share. That's up just a bit from the previous year, when Apple had a 7.9% share, and it makes Apple the 4th largest domestic computer maker, behind HP, Dell and Acer. These numbers are preliminary estimates based on 2009 sales. The report notes that low end notebooks and netbooks were really pushing the computer sales numbers, an area where Apple is not really competing. Windows 7 equipped computers also accounted for a strong 4th quarter in domestic sales. Sales of computers were also up worldwide. IDC reports that the market gained 15.8% year over year. In the 4th quarter of 2009 there was double digit growth for the first time since the 3rd quarter of 2008. Apple's 4th quarter growth rate was the third highest of U.S. PC vendors, with sales up 31% compared to a year ago. Toshiba had booming sales up 71.5% from 2008, and HP was up a healthy 45% from the 4th quarter of 2008. So if Apple makes a tablet, will tablets count as PC sales? Wonder that will do to their 2010 numbers.
