Foxconn expects strong holiday sales in Q4; September sales slump
TAIWAN’S Foxconn, the world’s largest contract electronics maker and a major Apple supplier, predicted on Thursday (Oct 5) strong year-end holiday sales after September sales dropped, coming off a high base for consumer electronics.
The fourth quarter is traditionally the hot season for Taiwan’s tech companies as they race to supply smartphones, tablets and other electronics to major vendors such as Apple for the year-end holiday period in Western markets.
Apple last month launched a new series of iPhones that include a new titanium shell, a faster chip and improved video game playing abilities, but it did not raise prices for the new iPhone 15, reflecting the global smartphone slump.
Foxconn said in a statement that with the second half of the year a “traditional peak season” for consumer tech products, operations “will ramp up sequentially”.
“The fourth quarter should see significant growth compared to the third quarter,” it added, without elaborating.
Foxconn beat estimates for Q2 earnings unveiled in August thanks to a booming artificial intelligence sector, but retains a cautious outlook for this year due to global economic uncertainties.
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Foxconn, formally called Hon Hai Precision Industry Co, said revenue last month reached NT$660.7 billion (S$28.1 billion), down 19.7 per cent year on year but soaring 60.1 per cent from August.
Its Q3 revenue dropped 11.7 per cent on-year, but was up 18.4 per cent on the previous quarter.
Revenue in its smart consumer electronics products, including smartphones, saw strong growth month on month “due to new product launches in September”, Foxconn said.
Foxconn is the world’s biggest iPhone assembler, but has been trying to diversify into electric vehicles.
For last month, it said that rising shipments of auto components contributed to significant year-on-year growth for its components and other products business.
It added that September year-on-year revenue for cloud and networking products, which includes servers, declined due to “conservative customer pull-in”.
Foxconn will release its Q3 earnings on Nov 14, when it will give more details on its outlook.
Foxconn’s Taipei-listed shares closed up 0.5 per cent on Thursday ahead of the release of its September sales, compared with a 1.1 per cent gain for the broader market. Foxconn shares have risen 3.6 per cent this year, giving it a market value of US$44.1 billion. REUTERS
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