iPhone 'Sales Panic' Is Good News For Apple

More details from the supply chain have come to light this weekend and the consensus is growing that the iPhone XS, XS Max, and XR sales figures are not meeting expectations.

Why is this good news for Apple? Because this short-term reporting will play into the new long-term narrative that Tim Cook and his team are looking to set up.

Given the lower projections coming out of each part of the supply chain that can be readily identifiable as an Apple part, there is a reduction in orders. I doubt that Apple deliberately ordered high just to drop the demand at the last moment. It’s more likely Apple made an estimate on sales, and this estimate is proving to be too high and it is course-correcting with its partners.

Nevertheless, Apple’s iPhone sales will be perceived as falling by analysts and the industry.

APPLE CHIEF DESIGN OFFICER JONY IVE (L) AND APPLE CEO TIM COOK INSPECT THE NEW IPHONE XR (PHOTO BY QI HENG/VCG VIA GETTY IMAGES)GETTY

Apple has already stated that it will no longer be offering sales figures for the iPhone, instead focusing on the software and services side of Apple in the near future. With the increased retail price of the leading iPhones, and the increasing margins of the devices further down the portfolio, it’s likely that Apple’s revenue and profit will remain high.

This increase in numbers alongside the perception of falling sales will (hopefully) be seen as confirmation that Tim Cook’s new storyline for Apple is working.

Whether the markets will see it this was is going to decide if this story is happy every after or has a twist in the tail.