Apple reports record revenue results in India despite demonetisation

Apple reported a healthy quarter earnings for the fourth quarter and the company mentioned that it had both revenue and iPhone unit sales at record levels. The profits were not as impressive though as they fell short of the record numbers seen in the same quarter last two years. Apart from China, revenues were at an all-time high including the numbers in India.

“Despite the demonetisation move in India that created lots of economic pressure there last quarter. We had all-time record revenue results, and so we were very happy about that. We are in discussions on a number of things, including retail stores, and fully intend to invest significantly in the country and believe it’s a great place to be,” said Apple CEO Tim Cook on the company’s earnings call.

Considering the recent events of demonetisation of old currency in India, Cook said, “The demonetisation impact has not worked its way through yet. It’s still definitely having some overhang. But I think in the longer term, it’s a great move, and I feel really good about how we’re doing there.”

Apple usually does not report India numbers but according to market research firm Counterpoint, Apple sold over 2.5 million iPhone units in India last year out of which one-third of the shipments coming only from the fourth quarter.

This is good news for the company especially at a time when it is planning to start making iPhones in the country. “We are in discussions on a number of things, including retail stores, and fully intend to invest significantly in the country and believe it’s a great place to be,” said Cook.

Apart from iPhones, Apple has also sold a good number of Macs and iPads worldwide.

According to Luca Maestri, Apple’s Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, “We sold 5.4 million Macs and generated our highest-ever quarterly Mac revenue. We were very happy to report double-digit unit growth in several countries, including Japan, Mainland China, India, the Netherlands, and Sweden, as well as in the US education market. Turning to iPad, we sold 13.1 million units globally, which was ahead of our expectations. We posted double-digit growth in both Mainland China and India, as we’ve expanded distribution channels in those countries and we continue to attract a very high percentage of first-time tablet buyers.”