Despite the latest iPhone release, Apple’s sales have continued to fall

Even though demand for iPhones has been high recently, Apple has still seen a persistent sales decline. Other services like the streaming platform Apple TV+ have also done well, but this hasn’t been enough to boost the company’s sales figures.

In the three months ending on September 30, the tech giant reported a 1% decrease in revenues, totaling $89.5 billion (£73.3 billion) compared to the same period the previous year. 

There was a sudden surge in interest in Mac computers and iPads after the COVID-19 lockdowns were lifted, but this was followed by a significant slowdown. This was the fourth consecutive quarter of year-on-year sales decline.

Despite this, the company reported a profit of $23 billion, partly boosted by record-breaking iPhone sales during the quarter. Their services, including iCloud and Apple Music, also performed exceptionally, generating $22.3 billion, a 16% increase from the previous year. 

However, concerns were raised about potential supply chain issues affecting deliveries of the new iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max devices.

Apple’s CEO, Tim Cook, stated that they were working diligently to address these supply challenges and anticipated achieving a supply-demand equilibrium later in the quarter. Cook expressed confidence in the company’s product lineup as they entered the crucial Christmas trading period. “We do believe that later this quarter, we’ll reach a supply-demand balance,” he said.

While iPhone sales remained strong, other Apple products appeared to lose appeal with customers recently. Sales of Mac computers, for instance, declined to $7.6 billion for the quarter, down from $11.6 billion the previous year.

In September, Apple unveiled its latest iPhone lineup, notably leaving out the lightning charging port due to European Union regulations, replacing it with a USB-C cable as the universally accepted standard. 

Economic uncertainties in the Chinese market also impacted the company’s performance, resulting in a 2.5% drop in sales in China. However, Tim Cook emphasized that the business in China had grown when accounting for foreign exchange rates.