Apple sales drop smaller than expected

Apple has sold more iPhones in the third quarter of its fiscal year than it did last year, which was a surprisingly more positive feat than analysts had expected. Compared to the second quarter, there was further decline though.

Strong growth in other divisions

The company sold 41 million iPhones in the third quarter, a sizeable drop compared to the second quarter, but 2 % more than in last year’s third quarter. That is surprising to say the least, considering many analysts had expected consumers to postpone their purchase in order to acquire the iPhone 8, which should release later this year.

Thanks to these good sales, Apple’s turnover grew 7.2 % to 45.4 billion dollars (39 billion euro) and its operational profit grew 6.6 % to 10.8 billion dollars (9 billion euro). “With a 7 % year-on-year growth, we are proud to announce our third straigth quarter of increased growth”, CEO Tim Cook said.

Apple’s strongest growth comes from its Services division, which includes Apple Pay. Turnover for this division grew 22 % to 7.3 billion dollars (6.2 billion euro). The Other Products division, which includes Apple TV and Apple Watch, grew to 2.7 billion dollars (2.3 billion euro) and the company wants to expand these divisions over the next few years, in an attempt to lower its iPhone dependency. Currently, the smartphone contributes two thirds of its total turnover.

In the meantime, Apple continues to struggle in China, where turnover dropped 10 % because of intense competition, mainly from cheaper models.