‘Fanned’

Mark Gurman, writing for Bloomberg after Apple’s earnings announcement:

Concern about the iPhone business was fanned by suppliers that recently reported weak demand for high-end handsets, another sign the smartphone boom that made Apple the most-valuable company is ebbing. It has also been under pressure in China, where some consumers are shunning pricey iPhones and local rivals like Oppo and Vivo are grabbing market share. Tuesday’s report eased these fears, with China revenue rising 21 percent year-over-year.

Concern about the iPhone business wasn’t fanned by suppliers — it was fanned by publications like Bloomberg that drew gloomy conclusions about iPhone sales from those suppliers and the jackass analysts hyping them. Watch this 2-minute video from Gurman yesterday, or this slightly different video from this morning, and tell me who was “fanning the concern”.

Year over year, iPhone sales were up 3 percent on unit sales, but 14 percent on revenue. Unit sales are close to flat, but Apple grew revenue by double digits. There’s no other way to explain it than that iPhone X is a hit.

★ Tuesday, 1 May 2018