Apple sales lose ground, but iPhone growth strong
Apple on Thursday reported that sales fell for the fourth consecutive quarter when compared to the prior year, but profit rose on the back iPhones and services.
The tech giant said it made a profit of $23 billion on revenue of $89.5 billion, which was down slightly from the same period last year.
Apple chief executive Tim Cook said iPhone sales set a new record for its September quarter while money taken in from services hit an all-time high.
The company brought in $43.8 billion from iPhone sales while its services unit selling products such as Apple Music and iCloud brought in $22.3 billion, up 16 percent from a year ago.
"We now have our strongest lineup of products ever heading into the holiday season, including the iPhone 15 lineup," Cook said in an earnings release.
The iPhone performance came as sales of smartphones continued to shrink globally in the recently-ended quarter as consumers watched spending, according to market tracker Counterpoint.
Smartphone sales fell 8 percent, marking the ninth consecutive quarter of decline in year-over-year comparisons, according to research by Counterpoint's Market Pulse service.
Apple's strong September sales along with buzz around the new iPhone 15 line-up were signs the current quarter may break the losing trend, according to the market tracker.
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The company said that the supply of premium versions of the iPhone 15 would be constrained until the end of the year, putting a brake on sales.
"We're working very hard to get the product in the hands of all the customers that have ordered it," said Apple CFO Luca Maestri.
Cook said that Apple continued to face "an uneven macro-economic environment" in the quarter, including pressure from currency exchange
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