Apple Stock Rises as New Foldable iPhone Faces Delivery Delays

Apple Inc.'s shares increased by 1% on Friday morning following reports of extended delivery times for the company's first foldable smartphone, the iPhone Duo. Delivery estimates for models with varying storage capacities have been pushed into late January, signalling potential supply constraints ahead of the device's launch.

Set to begin retail sales on October 23, the iPhone Duo is priced starting at $1,999. According to Apple's U.S. online store, the estimated delivery date for models equipped with 256GB, 512GB, 1TB, and 2TB of storage is January 29.

This delay comes as Apple aims to expand its premium smartphone offerings with the introduction of a foldable design. Market analysts at Counterpoint Research predict that Apple could sell approximately six million Duo units by 2026.

The iPhone Duo boasts notable features, including two batteries, a glare-reducing screen finish, and a 48-megapixel Fusion camera. Additionally, the high demand for the Duo has also positively impacted Apple's existing conventional smartphone models. The iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max experienced a notable 12% year-on-year sales growth during their initial week in China. This performance helped Apple secure a 33% share of the Chinese smartphone market during that period, as reported by Counterpoint.

In a concurrently noteworthy achievement, Apple has joined Nvidia in reaching a market capitalisation of $5 trillion. Upcoming products in Apple’s smartphone lineup include the standard iPhone 18, iPhone Air 2, and the iPhone 18e, which are expected to be available around March 2027.

Market insights were provided by ICE Data Services, while additional reference data was sourced from FactSet. The copyright information is attributed to FactSet Research Systems Inc. and the American Bankers Association.