Foxconn says its big iPhone factories in China are back to normal
The Taiwan-based company, which is the main assembler of Apple (AAPL) products such as the iPhone and iPad, was forced to close its factories in China in late January as much of the country was locked down to prevent the spread of the virus.
Those closures affected much of Foxconn’s business. Brokerage firm KGI Asia says about 75% of the company’s production capacity is in mainland China.
Profits were hammered as a result of the closures. Foxconn, formally known as Hon Hai Precision Industry, on Friday reported first quarter operating profit of 4.5 billion Taiwan dollars ($151 million), a 72% decline from the prior year.
The pandemic has upended global supply chains. Analysts warned this spring that Foxconn’s troubles would likely hurt some of the biggest brands in electronics. Aside from Apple, the company also manufactures products for companies such as Microsoft (MSFT), Dell (DELL) and Sony (SNE).
Earlier this week, Sony said supply chain disruptions hurt its electronics business in the January-March quarter. Net profit fell 86% to 12.6 billion yen ($118 million) and revenue dropped 18%.
Apple’s business, meanwhile, has held relatively steady so far. The company reported last month that revenue ticked up in the most recent quarter compared to last year by more than analysts were expecting. It was still far short of the guidance the company gave before the pandemic, though.