iPhone 14 may face delay amid growing China-Taiwan tension

BEIJING: As Apple is gearing to launch its next-generation series of iPhones, a new report said that the upcoming iPhone 14 is likely to be delayed due to growing tension between China and Taiwan, media reports say.

According to GSMArena, Apple is TSMC’s top customer, and the company ships chips to Pegatron in China, where iPhones are assembled. And US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan has put an even bigger strain on the China-Taiwan relationship.

As a result, the CCP has come up with new regulations forbidding any mention of “Taiwan” or “Republic of China” in shipping documents.

This, in turn, means that some, if not all, of the hardware, could be returned to Taiwan and delay the iPhone 14 production as a result, the report said.

Also, Pegatron’s Vice Chairman and top executives from TSMC were seen with Pelosi during the visit, so this could be a beginning of a more fierce trade war between the CCP and Taiwan in which Apple and other US-based companies are caught in the middle, it added.

Apple is already in talks with its Taiwanese partners and has requested that all labelling with “Made in Taiwan” or “Republic of China” be removed or replaced.

Recently, a report said that Apple plans to ship its iPhone 14 simultaneously from factories in China and India.

On the microblogging site Twitter, analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said his latest survey indicates Foxconn’s iPhone production site in India will ship the new 6.1-inch iPhone 14 almost simultaneously with China for the first time in the second half of 2022 (India being one quarter or more behind in the past).

This year’s iPhone lineup will likely include the iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Pro, iPhone 14 Max, and the 6.7-inch iPhone 14 Pro Max.