Apple Sells Over Two Million iPhone 5 Handsets In Opening Chinese Weekend

China is a perplexing place in terms of how it impacts Apple. It's the place that has caused Apple tons of trouble in terms of bad PR, stemming primarily from Foxconn suicides and tales of terrible working conditions to assemble items like the iPhone and iPad. It's also home to a huge amount of knockoff Apple products, and even knockoff Apple stores. That said, it's also a place with millions of affluent people who are yearning to buy legitimate Apple products. In recent quarters, a shocking amount of revenue is flowing in from sales in China, and it seems that the nation has a lot of people hungry to snap up the newest iPhone.

In a recent press release, Apple announced that it sold over two million iPhone 5 units in China's opening weekend of sales. The phone wasn't even launched there until 12/14, the latest in a flow of nations that'll top 100 by the end of the year. “Customer response to iPhone 5 in China has been incredible, setting a new record with the best first weekend sales ever in China,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO. “China is a very important market for us and customers there cannot wait to get their hands on Apple products.”


It'll be interesting to see how China's opening weekend compares when looking at next year's iPhone, to see if demand is rising or sinking. There's a growing amount of competition, but this can only seem like positive news for Apple.