Apple Actions dropped Wednesday after Bloomberg have reported that Chinese regulators plan to open an official survey on the costs and policies of the iPhone giant app store.
Apple’s shares fell 2.66% at 9:34 a.m. London time in prior trading.
State administration for market regulations (SAMR) examine policies that include Apple to make a reduction of 30% on integrated expenses, as well as blocking third -party payment services and application stores, A Bloomberg reported on Wednesday, citing familiar people with the question.
The Chinese market regulator has not decided to officially open an Apple survey, according to the report.
The Apple and China Ministry of Commerce was not immediately available to comment when it was contacted by CNBC.
The news occurs while trade tensions between the United States and China increased under the administration of President Donald Trump, a month after his second term.
Apple has argued that its strict app Store policies are designed to protect users and improve the experience between its products.
This week, China has also opened an investigation into Google for alleged violations Antitrust, although the market regulator has not provided details on the survey.
THE Financial time Tuesday that the SAMR also plans a survey on US Chipmaker Intel.
The Apple App Store was examined by regulators around the world. He was forced to open his App Store in Europe, under the Digital Markets Act in the EU. This means that it now allows non -applied companies to offer application stores in Europe, and application developers can also use third -party payment systems.
If the Chinese probe continued, it would lead to another headache for Apple on one of its greatest markets. The Cupertino giant is already faced with solid competition from local players like Huawei who gnaw at its market share of smartphones. Apple sales in Greater China decreased 11% in annual shift during the December quarter.
