Morgan: Apple's (AAPL.US) supply chain improves, delivery time for iPhone 16 series drops

Zhitong Finance learned that Apple's (AAPL.US) overall delivery time for iPhone 16 has decreased year-on-year, but the delivery time for Pro and Pro Max models has recently increased because the first phase of Apple's AI function Apple Intelligence is expected to be launched on October 28.
Overall, the delivery time for the basic, Plus, Pro and Pro Max models of iPhone 16 one month after release is shorter than that of iPhone 15. The average delivery time for all iPhone 15 models in this cycle is 20.9 days. According to Morgan Stanley, the current average delivery time for all iPhone 16 models is 13.25 days. However, the delivery time for iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max has recently increased by 2 days, to 20.5 days and 27.5 days respectively, indicating increased demand; this is still lower than the 34.8 days and 27.5 days of the previous models.
Erik Woodring-led Morgan Stanley analysts said in a report on Tuesday: "Our checks on the supply chain show that Apple has asked suppliers to prepare component inventories earlier than usual in this cycle to avoid supply shortages, which led to the supply-demand imbalance of new iPhone Pro/Pro Max models for several months in the past cycle. We believe better supply conditions are one of the reasons why the delivery time of iPhone in this cycle is shorter than in recent cycles."
The first phase of Apple Intelligence is expected to be launched on October 28, when Apple will release iOS 18.1 update to US users. This update will include new writing tools, new Siri interface, text and email summaries, "cleaning" function for photos, audio transcription and improvements to Safari browser.
The company will launch more Apple Intelligence features in the December iOS 18.2 update. However, non-English versions of the update are not expected to be released until March 2025.
Secondly, Morgan Stanley also noted that the iPhone SE4 priced around $499 would allow Apple to enter the low-end smartphone market, which has a potential market of $83.7 billion (about $1590 billion) globally, and is expected to be released in March 2025.
Moreover, another possible catalyst for Apple is the new iPad mini equipped with Apple Intelligence, which will be launched on October 23.
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