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Apple's quarterly profit has beaten market expectations — though the 52.2 million iPhones it sold was slightly less than anticipated as global demand for smartphones wanes.
Markets at 7:10am (AEST):
- ASX SPI 200 futures +0.1pc, ASX 200 (Tuesday close) +0.5pc to 6,015.
- AUD: 74.88 US cents, 54.99 British pence, 62.44 Euro cents, 82.27 Japanese yen, $NZ1.07
- US: Dow Jones -0.3pc at 24,099, S&P 500 +0.25pc at 2,655, Nasdaq +0.9pc at 7,131
- Europe: FTSE +0.2pc at 7,520, DAX +0.25pc at 12,612, Euro Stoxx 50 +0.5pc at 3,536
- Commodities: Brent crude -1.9pc at $US73.29/barrel, spot gold -0.9pc at $US1,303.60/ounce
In the March quarter, Apple's revenue was $US61.1 billion (up from $US52.9 billion last year), and its profit was $2.73 per share (higher than the expected $2.68 per share).
Its services business — which includes Apple Music, the App Store and iCloud — posted $US9.1 billion in revenue (compared with expectations of $8.3 billion).
Heading into earnings seasons, investors were hopeful that growth in that segment could help offset the cooling global smartphone market.
The average selling price for an iPhone was $US728, compared with Wall Street expectations of $US742.
Apple also bought back $US23.5 billion worth of its own stock in the March quarter, a sign that it is bringing money earned offshore back to the United States.
The results sent the tech company's shares up 3.3 per cent to $US169.10 in after-hours trading.
That is on top of its 2.3 per cent surge during Wall Street's Tuesday trading session.
But investors have had concerns around Apple because of brewing trade tensions with China.
While there has not yet been a tariff on devices such as Apple's iPhone, Apple CEO Tim Cook last week travelled to Washington to meet with US President Donald Trump at the White House to discuss trade matters.
Mixed day on Wall Street
In US markets, the Dow Jones fell 0.3 per cent to 24,099.
The broader S&P 500 rose 0.25 per cent, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq surged by 0.9 per cent.
Technology was the best performing S&P sector by far, up 1.5 per cent — with Apple being one its strongest stocks.
But almost half the stocks in the S&P 500 ended their day in negative territory, as investors await the two-day Federal Reserve meeting and any clues on how quickly US interest rates will rise.
Gold has tumbled by 0.8 per cent, to $US1,305 US dollars an ounce, its lowest price in four months as the greenback strengthens.
Brent crude oil has fallen sharply, by 1.9 per cent, to $US73.26 a barrel.
Australian dollar falls below US75c
Australian shares are expected to open flat or slightly higher, following Wall Street's mixed performance.
The Australian dollar has fallen below the 75 US cents mark, as the greenback surges to a three-month high — and the chance of an Australian rate hike happening any time soon looks even more unlikely.
The local currency is buying 74.86 US cents, but has risen to 55 British pence and 62.4 Euro cents.
Topics: stockmarket, business-economics-and-finance, markets, economic-trends, company-news, currency, australia, united-states
First posted