Taiwanese company Foxconn, the largest manufacturer of iPhones and the largest global provider of electronic product services, expects its business performance this year to be "slightly better" than last year, though it faces a shortage of chips used in artificial intelligence servers. Company Chairman Liu Young-way stated on Sunday, "We did well last year despite experiencing a significant write-down in the first quarter," referring to the write-down associated with its 34% stake in the Japanese electronics company Sharp Corp. Liu added to reporters on the sidelines of the company's annual employee event in Taipei, "Regarding this year's outlook, I think it may be slightly better than last year."
Foxconn mentioned last November that its forecasts for 2024 are "conservative and relatively neutral." Liu noted, "The demand for AI servers will be good, of course," but global economic uncertainty amid ongoing geopolitical issues will impact demand for consumer products. He explained that one sector in the market will perform well, but many other sectors will face difficulties.
Apple predicted on Thursday a decline in iPhone sales, with its targeted total revenue being around six billion dollars, which is below Wall Street's expectations due to a downturn in its business in China. The results heightened concerns among some analysts that the company’s flagship product is losing its strength in the key Asian market, where consumers are purchasing foldable phones and other devices from Huawei, supported by a Chinese-made chip.
Foxconn, officially known as Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., is scheduled to announce its fourth-quarter profits next month and will update its projections for the year. The company is expected to release its sales data for January tomorrow, Monday.
