NEW YORK, December 30, 2025, 04:56 ET — Premarket
- Apple shares were up about 0.1% in premarket trading, near $273.76.
- Barclays pointed to a rebound in China iPhone shipment signals, but warned market share remains pressured.
- Traders are watching Fed minutes later Tuesday for rate clues that can move megacap tech.
Apple shares edged up 0.1% in premarket trading on Tuesday, changing hands around $273.76.
The stock’s early move follows a fresh read-through on China demand, a key swing factor for Apple’s iPhone business and investor sentiment around the latest iPhone 17 cycle.
The backdrop is cautious into year-end. U.S. stocks ended lower on Monday as heavyweight technology names retreated, and investors have Fed meeting minutes and weekly jobless claims on the radar in an otherwise data-light week.
In a note citing China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology data based on IMEI registrations (unique device identifiers), Barclays analyst Tim Long said implied iPhone “sell-in” — shipments into distribution channels — slipped about 0.2 million units from October, or 3%, but jumped 131% from a year earlier. “We believe the better performance was primarily driven by the iPhone 17 release,” Long wrote, adding that channel inventory build likely supported recent volumes; Barclays reiterated an Underweight rating, meaning it expects the stock to lag peers, and flagged competition and what it called an undefined AI strategy. Investing.com UK
Sell-in can diverge from “sell-through,” which is what consumers actually buy, because carriers and retailers adjust inventory. That can make monthly shipment proxies noisy around big launches.
The China tone matters because investors have leaned on iPhone 17 momentum to defend Apple’s premium valuation, even as domestic rivals step up marketing and product releases in the market.
That sensitivity is amplified late in the year, when thinner liquidity can magnify moves in megacap stocks. Rate expectations also matter: shifts in yields tend to ripple through tech valuations faster than they do in more defensive sectors.
Traders will parse the Fed’s minutes for signals on how policymakers see inflation and the path of interest rates in 2026, after rate cuts earlier this month sharpened debate over what comes next.
Apple’s next major catalyst is earnings. The company is expected to report quarterly results around Jan. 29, according to Nasdaq’s earnings calendar.
