by Stephen Nellis

(Reuters) – Apple published quarterly sales and profit above Wall Street expectations on Thursday, notably in the wake of growth in iPhone sales which offset the decline in demand for Mac computers and iPad tablets.

The title of the Cupertino, California-based group, which has gained 37% since the start of the year, was down 1.3% in post-closing stock market trading.

Although Apple has navigated the global trough in the smartphone market better than many of its competitors, the American giant still has to deal with a fragile economic rebound in China, one of its main markets.

Over the July-September period, Apple’s total sales fell by around 1% to 89.50 billion dollars, however beating the consensus which stood at 89.28 billion according to LSEG data. In particular, it recorded almost a billion dollars, more than the amount expected by Wall Street for its revenues from services.

The group’s quarterly profit came to $1.46 per share, while analysts on average expected $1.39 per share according to LSEG data.

In China, where competition is fiercer this year with the comeback of Huawei with devices equipped with Chinese chips, Apple saw its quarterly sales fall by 2.5% to 15.08 billion dollars, compared to 15.47 billion a year earlier.

Apple’s chief executive, Tim Cook, said that taking into account exchange rates, Apple’s business in China had grown at an annual rate, in the wake of sales of iPhones and services.

“We set a quarterly record for the iPhone in mainland China,” he told Reuters, claiming four of the top five smartphones in sales in major Chinese cities.

(Reporting Stephen Nellis in San Francisco and Yuvraj Malik in Bangalore; Jean Terzian)

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