Apple Supplier Murata Says iPhone X Output Target Cuts Overstated in Report

Japan's Murata Manufacturing Co, which supplies components for the iPhone X, has not seen its orders drop commensurately with the sharp fall in the iPhone X production target stated in a report, a senior Murata executive said.

Apple will halve its iPhone X production target for the first three months of the year to around 20 million units, the Nikkei reported on Monday, sending its shares down 1.6 percent.

"Our understanding is that it is not that great," said Yoshitaka Fujita, vice chairman of Murata, when asked about the report.

The report added to growing concerns about weak sales of the $999 (roughly Rs. 63,600) phone, making investors jittery about the company's financial outlook when it reports first-quarter results on Thursday.

Apple's shares fell to their lowest level in 2018, knocking off $14 billion (roughly Rs. 89,100 crores) from the company's market value. The company declined to comment.

The production cut was prompted by slower-than-expected sales in the holiday shopping season in Europe, the United States and China, the Japanese newspaper reported, without citing a source.

The iPhone X was the first phone to sport a new design since the launch of the iPhone 6 in 2015 and many expected it to lead to blockbuster sales, dubbed by Wall Street analysts as a "supercycle."

Several analysts have lowered their estimates for iPhone X shipments in the past few weeks, citing the high price of the device and other factors, with at least three downgrading their rating on the stock.