Apple sells over 5 million iPhone 5 in first weekend

San Fransisco: Apple Inc sold out of its latest smartphone, with more than 5 million iPhone 5 sold in the three days since it hit stores, the company said on Monday. The early total blasted past sales of the iPhone 4S, which sold more than 4 million units in its first weekend after Apple introduced it in October 2011. Apple said while the majority of iPhone 5 pre-orders have been shipped to customers, many were scheduled to go out in October. [caption id=“attachment_466756” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Getty Images[/caption] “While we have sold out of our initial supply, stores continue to receive iPhone 5 shipments regularly and customers can continue to order online and receive an estimated delivery date,” Apple Chie f Executive Tim Cook said in a statement. Apple signaled last week that pre-orders outstripped initial supply and that many p hones would not be available until October. Still , there were concerns Apple may not be able to produce the iPhone 5 fast enough to meet demand around the world. “They may not be able to build them fast enough to hit their targets,” said Colin Gillis, a research analyst with BGC. “The reality is if they can’t build (fast enough), any hiccup is going to be a negative.” On Friday, fans lined up at stores in cities around the world to get their hands on the new phone, which is thinner and lighter and has a bigger screen. Shares of Apple were down 1.2 percent at $691.54 in early trading. Reuters