Apple down as top analyst Kuo says company cut iPhone 16 orders by 10M units

Investing.com -- Apple fell Wednesday after Market analyst Ming-Chi Kuo at TF International, known for his knack of nailing predictions on Apple, delivered a gloomy update on iPhone 16 demand, saying the tech giant has cut a total of 10 million orders for the fourth quarter of 2024 through the first half of 2025.

Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL) fell more than 2% in recent trading Wednesday.

The cuts were mostly to non-pro iPhone 16 models, with total iPhone production for 4Q24, 1Q25, and 2Q25 now forecast at around 80 million, 45 million, and 39 million units, respectively, all down from a year earlier, Kuo wrote in a post on Medium.

The cut to orders over the three quarter period through H1 2025, indicates iPhone 16 production for second half of fiscal 2024 is now estimated at 84 million units, down from 88 million previously.

The gloomy estimate on iPhone 16 orders suggest there is "no evidence yet that Apple Intelligence could boost iPhone shipments in the near term," Kuo added.

Apple unveiled its iPhone 16 at its 'glowtime' product event last month, and showcased the integration of its artificial intelligence assistant Apple Intelligence into its new suite of iPhones.

Ahead of the launch, many Wall Street were optimistic that the new AI-powered iPhones could sway users of older iPhone models to upgrade, leading to a new upgrade cycle for the tech giant.

Apple released Wednesday a new preview of its Apple Intelligence features including the including integration of ChatGPT.

Apple Intelligence will be available to the public as part of the official iOS 18.1 release next week, Apple said.