Apple stock slides, trade war tensions overshadow product launches

AP

• Apple slides as trade war tensions overshadow the company’s new product unveiling on Wednesday.
• President Donald Trump threatened on Friday to hit China with duties on another $267 billion worth of goods.
• Apple warned that the proposed tariffs could result in a price raise for Apple Watch and AirPods.
• Watch Apple trade in real-time here.

Shares of Apple slid Monday as mounting trade war tensions overshadowed the company’s upcoming product launches.

The smartphone maker is expected to unveil its next-generation iPhones this Wednesday, at an event in California. Apple could launch three new iPhones, updated iPad Pros, Apple Watches, a new entry-level laptop, a pro-focused Mac mini desktop computer, and new accessories, according to a new report from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman.

He added that Apple’s iPhone X successors could be named the iPhone “Xs,” “Xs Max,” or “Xr.”

However, shares dropped as much as 2% in Monday as trade war tensions escalated.

President Donald Trump threatened on Friday to attack China with tariffs on another $267 billion worth of goods.

The proposed tariff could “cover a wide range of Apple products” and lift prices of the Apple Watch and AirPods, the company warned in a letter to the government published on Friday. Both are core product lines for Apple, 

“Because all tariffs ultimately show up as a tax on U.S. consumers, they will increase the cost of Apple products that our customers have come to rely on in their daily lives,” said the company.

Last week, dozens of manufacturing companies testified before US Trade Representatives about how Trump’s next round of duties against China could affect them. Some showed concerns of layoffs for American people and harm to US economic interests.

Shares of Apple are up 27% this year.

Business Insider