蘋果將報告iPhone年度銷量首次下降
Apple is expected to reportthe iPhone’s first annual decline in sales volumes this week, but in turnfuelling Wall Street’s hopes of a rebound in the run-up to Christmas.
蘋果(Apple)預計將於本週報告iPhone年銷量首次下滑，但這進而將提高華爾街對於在聖誕節前出現反彈的期待。
Apple is forecast to reportiPhone sales of about 45m units on Tuesday when it releases earnings for itsfiscal fourth quarter, according to analysts, marking the third successivequarter of decline for its flagship product. That would take total iPhone salesto 211m for Apple’s 2016 financial year, which is about 9 per cent lower thanthe previous year.
據分析師表示，蘋果將於週二發佈第四財季盈利數據，預計將報告iPhone銷量約4500萬部，這是該旗艦產品連續第三個季度銷量下滑，令蘋果2016財年iPhone總銷量達到2.11億部，比上年下降約9%。
Though the drop has long beenanticipated by investors based on Apple’s guidance, the result is a starkturnround after Apple’s blockbuster 2015, which saw iPhone sales surgeby 37 percent to 231m, thanks to huge demand for the iPhone 6.
儘管基於蘋果的指引，投資者對這一下降早就有所預期，但這是蘋果2015年驕人業績之後的一次明顯轉折，在iPhone 6巨大需求的推動下，該年iPhone銷量激增37%，至2.31億部。
While the iPhone 6S was unableto sustain that level of growth, many on Wall Street have become moreoptimistic about the prospects for itsApple’s latest version modelafterAppleexecutives said last quarter that sales had passed the“low point”.
雖然iPhone 6S無法保持這一增長水平，但許多華爾街人士對於蘋果新版手機的前景已經變得更加樂觀，此前蘋果高管在上季度表示，銷量已越過“低點”。
Mobile operators in the US andEurope, as well as some component suppliers, have voiced their confidence inearly sales of the iPhone 7, which some analysts say may also see an addedboost from Samsung’s withdrawal of its Note 7 smartphone following a spate ofbattery fires.
美國和歐洲的移動運營商以及部分組件供應商已表示，iPhone 7的初步銷售形勢讓他們有信心；一些分析師表示，三星(Samsung)在一連串電池着火事件後停產Note 7智能手機，可能也會帶來額外的促進。
Although iPhone unit sales areamong the most closely watched figures among investors when Apple reports itsquarterly earnings, analysts are also anticipating an increase to the averageselling price of a handset owing to the popularity of the iPhone 7 Plus, whichis sold out for weeks on Apple’s website.
雖然在蘋果的季度盈利報告中，iPhone銷量是投資者最關注的數據之一，但分析師還預期手機平均銷售價格將增加，這歸功於iPhone 7 Plus的暢銷，幾周來該手機在蘋果網站上一直脫銷。
While many on Wall Streetanticipate that Apple’s smartphone sales will be little better than flat yearon year in the December quarter, more bullish investors are already looking ata larger wave of upgrades by customers when next year’s iPhone arrives.
儘管許多華爾街人士預計，蘋果智能手機在截止12月的季度銷量比去年同期水平好不了多少，但比較樂觀的投資者已經在期盼，明年iPhone發佈後，會有更大一波客戶升級自己的手機。
After reporting earnings onTuesday, Apple is also expected to unveil new Macs on Thursday. Reporters havebeen invited to a press event at its Cupertino headquarters with the tagline“Hello again”. Many have interpreted the invitation as a reference to theoriginal launch in 1984, when the computer famously introduced itself with thewords “Hello, I am Macintosh”.
蘋果在週二發佈盈利報告後，預計將在週四推出新的Mac電腦。記者們已接到參加在該公司庫比蒂諾總部舉行的新聞發佈會的邀請，其標語是“你好，又見面了。”許多受邀者將此邀請與1984年初代機發布作比，當時的標語是“你好，我是麥金塔(Macintosh)”。
