Christmas Rush: Apple Customers In Asia Can Expect To Face Longer Waits For iPads, iPhones

Apple Inc AAPL customers in key Asian markets could face delays in getting their iPads and iPhones due to supply crunch ahead of the holiday season, Nikkei Asia reported on Monday.

What Happened: Buyers placing their orders on Monday would have to wait upto eight weeks to get their iPad models in the Philippines, while those in China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, South Korea, Thailand and Malaysia would have it delivered after Christmas, as per Nikkei Asia.

The Space Grey iPads with 256 GB memory and WiFi equipped units would have a waiting period until Jan. 14 in the Philippines. The waiting period for the latest iPhones is about four weeks in China, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Malaysia.

The waiting period for the iPhone is shorter than for iPads but still far longer than normal, as per the report.

The iPhones and the iPads usually take three to five days to get delivered. 

See Also: KeyBanc Sees Robust Demand For Apple iPhone 13

Why It Matters: Apple products are usually delivered faster as they are shipped by air. The current delays are caused by production constraints even as COVID-19 related disruptions have begun to ease. 

Continued supply chain constraints are likely to continue to hit Apple’s delivery timeline even as demand stays robust. 

KeyBanc analyst John Vinh last week said iPhone 13 demand remains robust, but supply constraints have significantly impacted order fulfillment. Wedbush Securities analyst Daniel Ives similarly said that despite the chip shortage, demand trends for the iPhone 13 is robust in both the U.S. and China. The analyst said Apple is on pace to sell about 40 million iPhones between Black Friday and Christmas.

Price Action: Apple stock closed 1.70% higher at $160.55 a share on Friday.