China plans to expand a ban on the use of iPhones in sensitive departments to government-backed agencies and state companies, a sign of growing challenges for Apple in its biggest foreign market and global production base.
It is unclear how many companies or agencies could eventually adopt restrictions on personal devices, and there’s been no formal or written injunction as yet, the people said. State firms or organisations will likely vary in how strictly they enforce such bans, with some forbidding Apple devices from the workplace while others could bar employees from using them entirely.
The prospect of China souring on Apple jarred investors. The shares slid 3.6 per cent in New York on Wednesday US time, their biggest single-day drop since August 4. Apple had gained 46 per cent this year before the decline, part of a broader run-up in tech stocks. Foreign devices have long been discouraged in sensitive agencies, particularly as Beijing stepped up a campaign in recent years to reduce a reliance on technology from the US.