UBS: Overall iPhone demand in China was up 230% in September

A note to clients from from the UBS Asia Hardware team — as noted by Apple. 3.0 — says that monthly government data suggests overall iPhone demand in China 230% in September. That compares to 110% monthly growth in September 2018, according to the investment bank.

Here’s what UBS has to say: “This is wholly consistent with recent procurement data/estimates A stronger sell-through combined with our supply chain work leads us to believe there is upside to our current iPhone unit estimate of flat for the Dec. quarter and flat Y/Y in F20. Apple stock is up ~8% against the S&P 500 down ~1% since the launch of iPhone 11 – an atypical seasonal pattern that we think duly reflects both our optimism about C2020 and AAPL’s prominence as a major global underweight for portfolio managers.

“Several factors are contributing to strong iPhone demand including a better trade-in program from Apple, a more attractive price-point for the base model, services bundle with hardware, and given the largest mix of phones in the install base (iPhone 7) is three generations old.”