Last month Tianfeng International analyst Ming-Chi Kuo broke the news that the iPhone 14 / Pro added a new Chinese supplier — Shengbang Microelectronics — in order to avoid potential supply chain shortages when mass production of the device begins.
Guo then also said that Apple is indeed working with more Chinese suppliers, but he said this is just part of the company’s plan to also avoid transitioning to dependence on one supplier.
Ming-Chi Kuo tweeted this morning that Apple’s supply chain management in the past has focused on quality and cost, but now growing geopolitical risks are creating reverse globalization, which adds more complexity and uncertainty to the supply chain. He later added that Apple faces two challenges.
Challenge 1: The impact of geopolitical risk on sales in China (Apple’s most important overseas market). Solution: Doing business with more Chinese suppliers.
Challenge 2: The impact of geopolitical risk on supply efficiency. Solution: Establish more non-Chinese manufacturing sites.
He also revealed that Apple is currently already implementing these two solutions, and is expected to accelerate this progress in the future.
