Investing.com - Apple inched higher on Monday as investors mulled reports the tech giant plans to launch three new iPhones in 2020, though gains were kept in check as analysts warned on near-term iPhone growth amid the ongoing U.S.-China trade war.
Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) climbed 0.8% after TF International Securities analyst Ming Chi Kuo said the tech giant will launch three different iPhone models in 2020, with 6.7-inch, 6.1-inch and 5.4-inch screen sizes. Two of the three models, the 5.4-inch 6.7-inch, will support 5G.
The upcoming launch of the 5G iPhone has longed been touted as an important upgrade cycle as the tech giant's most recent slate of smartphones did little spark the sort of fanfare and record sales that have become commonplace.
"We estimate that 5G iPhone will account for around 60% of total new 2H20 iPhone shipments (vs. consensus’s 20%)," Kuo said.
For the near term the demise in iPhone demand continues to weigh on Apple in the wake of a messy U.S.-China trade war that has piled the pressure on consumers, particular those in China, a key market for the iPhone maker.
JPMorgan trimmed its iPhone shipment estimates for calendar Q2-Q4 to to $139.5 million total, down 4%, though tempered fears by insisting that it still sees shipment growth for the current year.
Credit Suisse, meanwhile, said the decline in the pace of iPhone shipments “has significantly improved” in the June quarter, though at 4% down year on year, are still behind the 4% growth in the overall China smartphone market.
Apple’s shares are likely “to remain range-bound near-term, given the significant uncertainty created by U.S.-China trade tensions,” Credit Suisse added.