The US is looking to ban the Chinese social media app TikTok and WeChat. Apple Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo is keeping a keen eye on what banning these apps could actually result in. Kuo via MacRumors has hinted that the ban of Tencent's WeChat app might lead to a drop of up to 30 percent in iPhone sales worldwide.
To recall, US President Trump has recently issued an executive order saying that TikTok and WeChat will be banned in the US in 45 days unless they are sold by the parent companies.
The report adds that Kuo believes that if the US bans the WeChat app, Apple will be forced to remove it from the AppStore as well. The report adds, "Since WeChat is very critical to Chinese users, integrating communications, payments, e-Commerce, social software, news reading, and productivity functions, we believe that the move will tank iPhone shipments in the Chinese market." Global shipments of other Apple devices are likely to drop by up to 25 percent.
In addition to this, the report also suggests that if the app gets banned in just the US market, then too, iPhone sales would decline up to 6 percent, and other Apple products sales might fall by 3 percent.
Kuo has further advised the investors to reduce their stock holdings of companies in Apple's supply chain like LG Innotek and Genius Electronic Optical "due to risks of a WeChat ban".
source https://www.firstpost.com/tech/news-analysis/apple-iphone-sales-might-decline-up-to-30-percent-worldwide-if-the-us-bans-wechat-kuo-8694071.html
