A fresh outbreak of the novel coronavirus in Hong Kong’s Shenzhen district may impact Apple’s iPhone and Mac Studio shipments. The government has imposed a lockdown, closing all nonessential businesses.
Foxconn, Others Halt Production in Shenzhen
The recent outbreak of additional COVID-19 cases prompted the Chinese government to lock down the region. The order only allows essential businesses to remain open, according to the recent order.
On Sunday, 60 new cases arose in the southern business district of Shenzhen, which is near Hong Kong (via AP). The city is home to some 17.5 million people. While those numbers are low compared to Hong Kong as a whole, the Chinese government is enforcing a zero tolerance policy on such infections. Only those businesses that supply food, fuel and other necessities may remain open. The order also resulted in shutting down bus and subway service between Shenzhen and Shanghai.
Foxconn and many other manufacturers have major manufacturing facilities in that region, and have been forced to close down production.
Shipments of Mac Studio and iPhones Possibly Affected
Information about the precise impact of the lockdown is still sketchy. However, Foxconn did note that it is shifting more iPhone production to other plants, trying to minimize the impact. Furthermore, most of Foxconn’s iPhone assembly takes place in the central Chinese city Zhengzhou.
The Mac Studio, on the other hand, may already be showing delays because of the lockdown. The new desktop computer had already seen shipping times delayed into April and May. Several consumers who purchased the desktop computer early in the pre-order window reported seeing delivery times fall further behind after the announcement of the lockdown.
As of now, the Chinese government states the lockdown will last until at least March 20. The order requires all Shenzhen workers and citizens to undergo three rounds of COVID-19 testing. That testing could cause the Chinese government to extend the lockdown even further.
Apple has not yet commented on possible delays, but we have reached out to them for a statement. We will update this article with any new details from the tech giant.