At a time when China is cited one of the reasons for Apple investors to worry, the company CEO Tim Cook plans to visit Beijing to meet high-level government officials, people familiar with the matter told Reuters. The visit is scheduled for later this month.
During this visit in China, Cook plans to meet senior government and Communist Party leaders, including those in charge of propaganda, the source informed the news outlet.
You may recall that in the past few weeks Apple and its Chinese operations made headlines. Its iBooks and iMovie services were shut down last month in China, following regulations that especially affect foreign firms.
Apple’s weak quarterly earnings raised concerns among investors as its revenue in China dropped by 26%. On top of that, Apple has lost exclusive rights to use the iPhone trademark in the country.
Activist investor Carl Icahn, who held 0.8% of all Apple common shares, cited concerns over China, when arguing why he sold his stake in the company.
Despite the drop in sales revenue in the country, Apple’s CEO remained very optimistic about China’s market and tried to reassure investors that everything will go as planned as this is a play on the long term.
