Apple Inc. surprised investors with a decent beat on quarterly revenue from China, countering months of data that showed a quickening decline in iPhone sales.

Counterpoint released the global foundry market share ranking for the fourth quarter of 2023, showing that TSMC maintained its leadership status with a 61% market share driven by strong demand from AI and the restocking of smartphones.

Bolstered by strong sales of its first AI smartphone, the Galaxy S24 series, which debuted earlier this year, Samsung Electronics Mobile eXperience (MX) division achieved remarkable results in the first quarter of 2024 despite the contraction of the smartphone market.

Apple reported a fall in sales over the past quarter due to the high base effect and a few product launches a year ago. Apple anticipates a return to growth in the current quarter and is optimistic about stimulating growth through the forthcoming product launch event and a developer conference.

In the first quarter of 2024, Huawei's revenue and net profit showed remarkable annual growth rates of 37% and 564% respectively.

Leading handset chip vendors Qualcomm and MediaTek are unlikely to be alarmed by Huawei's fast rebound in China's smartphone market, according to industry sources.

Apple is expected to rebound from a lackluster first half of 2024, with shipments of both iPhones and Mac computers picking up in the latter part of the year, say supply chain sources. As mere hardware refreshes can no longer stimulate consumer purchases, market attention has focused almost exclusively on AI and foldable screens; in Apple's case, however, implementing AI into their products may be the quicker option.

Qualcomm reported slightly stronger-than-expected results over the past quarter, and its upbeat outlook suggests an improvement in the mobile phone industry. Qualcomm also expects the automotive business to play a larger role.

Major telecom equipment companies are now bracing for a gloomy 2024 as the global Radio Access Network (RAN) market remains in the doldrums, with Ericsson expecting a depressed market until at least the end of the year. For China-based equipment makers, however, this might as well be news from another universe.

The Economic Times quoted sources saying that Tata Electronics, which joined the ranks of Apple suppliers in recent years, is now engaged in internally developing very sophisticated and highly precise CNC tools essential for manufacturing these iPhone casings.

In the second quarter outlook for 2024, MediaTek has projected a return to normalcy in shipments after inventory restocking by clients in preceding quarters. Anticipating a decline in revenue within 9%, the semiconductor giant asserts that the smartphone industry's customary sluggishness during this period remains in line with expectations.