Apple iPhone X Supplier Foxconn Loses $700 In Q3, Worst Since 2008 Recession

Foxconn is one of Apple’s biggest partners in producing the iPhone smartphones since it literally assembles the devices for the Cupertino firm. Now it’s been revealed that the Taiwanese firm’s Q3 revenue just fell by 39 percent compared to last year’s numbers. This is the worst performance by the company since the 2008 financial crisis.

In Foxconn’s Q3 revenue report, it was revealed that the company lost $696 million compared to last year. It fell short of projections and is comparable to the firm’s performance during the recent recession, Bloomberg reports.

This isn’t surprising since the Taiwanese assembly company does get most of its business making iPhones for Apple. Unfortunately, due to the supply issues related to essential parts for the iPhone X, the firm was not able to manufacture as many of the devices as initially thought.

It would also seem that the biggest issue was due to Face ID, which Apple suddenly decided to adopt, catching suppliers off-guard. The technology required parts that were not generally produced in the kind of numbers that Apple needed. What’s more, the Cupertino firm actually had to compete with other companies for the parts, which led to supply shortage.

Apple really wanted to crank out as many iPhone X units in time for the holiday season, which is generally one of its most profitable timeframes. Even now, the iPhone giant continues to struggle with scarce materials to meet the demands of its rabid fan base.

On top of the supply challenges in assembling the iPhone X, it would seem that Foxconn also had to contend with the complexity of actually doing it. The company’s operating expenses rose by 16 percent, The Verge reports. To top it all off, the iPhone 8 and the iPhone 8 Plus, which were easier to assemble did not sell as well as previous iterations.