Tim Prepare dinner, main govt officer of Apple Inc., center, comes at Apple Developer Academy at Binus College in Tangerang, Banten, Indonesia, on Wednesday, April 17, 2024.
Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Pictures
Apple’s Tim Cook dinner is in Singapore for the most recent leg of his whirlwind tour about Southeast Asia as the CEO pivots toward the location for growth and sales advancement amid struggles in China.
Prepare dinner confirmed his arrival in Singapore on his formal X (previously identified as Twitter) account Thursday, publishing a online video of himself with a local photographer at the city’s famed Gardens by the Bay tourist attraction.
In accordance to nameless sources cited in a Bloomberg report, Cook’s check out will last until Friday and incorporate a assembly with the town-state’s up coming prime minister, Lawrence Wong, as effectively as incumbent Lee Hsien Loong. Lee will formally action down on Might 15 just after 20 many years as the head of federal government. Wong will become Singapore’s fourth primary minister.
Cook’s arrival in the city follows Apple’s announcement of strategies to spend around $250 million into its functions in Singapore. While the tech giant by now employs 3,600 persons in the place, Apple said the expansion will supply place for new roles, such as in artificial intelligence.
The state serves as a regional hub for the Cupertino, California-based mostly tech large, with vital roles in software, hardware, solutions and support, the organization stated.
The conference with the primary minister is anticipated to conclude Cook’s tour close to Southeast Asia that saw the CEO make stops in Vietnam to satisfy with Apple builders and customers, and Indonesia, where he met with President Joko Widodo.
Bloomberg reported that Cook’s timetable was packed with community routines to generate fascination in the brand name, which could pave the way for a far more aggressive regional product sales campaign.
Apple did not immediately reply to a CNBC request for remark about Cook’s itinerary.
This calendar year, the corporation introduced an on the web Apple Shop in Vietnam and has reportedly been hiring for its to start with retail middle in Malaysia.
Enhanced organization in Southeast Asia could assist offset the company’s the latest headwinds. Figures released Monday by the Global Details Company confirmed world Iphone shipments fell 10% from a 12 months back in the first quarter amid improved competitors in China.
Smartphone product sales in China, Apple’s most significant overseas marketplace, have also been in a lull in contrast to Southeast Asia, in which product sales ended up booming at the get started of the calendar year.
The region’s mobile phone marketplace is forecasted to mature 7% yr-above-calendar year in 2024, a lot speedier than a 3% amount for the relaxation of the globe, according to facts from Canalys.
Cook dinner has also utilized his most recent travels to highlight Southeast Asia as an essential manufacturing hub.
The business has pushed to diversify its source chain outside of its base in China because 2022, when it professional pandemic-connected source disruptions.
Vietnam has now grow to be a crucial manufacturing place amid diversification endeavours. Meanwhile, Cook dinner claimed on Wednesday that the enterprise will “glimpse at” producing in Indonesia.