- KGI's Ming-Chi Kuo, whose supply chain scoops have often panned out, is cutting his FQ4 (Sep. quarter) iPhone 5C (AAPL +0.3%) shipment estimate by 33% to 11.4M units. He also predicts shipments will drop another 10% in FQ1 to 10.4M. However, he's unsure of the impact on total iPhone sales, since 5S and 4S demand remains strong.
- Kuo's estimate cut comes a day after a Chinese site reported Apple has cut 5C production in half to 150K units/day.
- Gene Munster's latest survey of 60 U.S. Apple Stores found only 6% of total 5S SKUs were available, down from 27% a week ago. Moreover, the percentage of stores having at least one SKU fell to 40% from 90%. Munster suspects the pending launch of the 5S/5C in 25 additional markets has tightened supplies.
- The Financial Post reports Apple recently hosted an Ontario recruiting event aimed at poaching BlackBerry (BBRY -0.4%) engineers as the latter company gets ready to cut ~40% of its workforce. Intel, Motorola Mobility, and Square are also making attempts to hire engineering talent within BlackBerry's hometown of Waterloo.