Foxconn, the largest supplier of material for the manufacture of iPhones, is again facing restrictions due to COVID-19. A new outbreak has forced the Chinese authorities to make a decision that fully affects companies like this one. It is called "closed circuit" work and may mean that the materials necessary for the manufacture of future iPhone 14s are reduced and therefore at the time of their launch. There are fewer units than expected.
COVID-19 strikes again. A new outbreak has forced the Chinese authorities to take extraordinary measures in certain business fields. In the case of Foxconn and its factory in Shenzhen, which has been forced to work in the closed circuit system for at least the next 7 days. That means that the plant workers will have to live inside the factory without being able to go outside even to see their relatives. If a worker tests positive, they will be transferred to a quarantine center and no one will be able to enter without a negative test.
This stress is exhausting for workers who have been in these conditions for more than two years and again seem to look like they did at the beginning of the pandemic. Although the Zhengzhou plant, which is the largest, continues as normal and therefore it seems that things are not so bad. However, if the outbreak worsens and infections increase, the restrictions may increase and then it is more than likely that one can even speak of temporary closures of factories.
That would be a major setback for the manufacture of the iPhone 14 (but also for Macs and other devices) that are due to ship in mid-September. So it is not surprising that this year there are fewer units to sell and reserve and the waiting time is longer than originally expected.
We will have to be attentive to see how it evolves.
