China Denies Banning iPhones, however Cites Unspecified Security Concerns

China on Wednesday made its first public feedback about studies that the federal government is proscribing the usage of Apple’s iPhones by some state workers, saying that Beijing had famous what it claimed had been safety issues concerning the system.

The feedback by Mao Ning, a spokeswoman for the Foreign Ministry, had been brief on particulars. She pointed to what she described as “media reports” about safety flaws within the iPhone, with out elaborating.

She additionally stated China had not printed “any law, regulation or policy document” banning the acquisition or use of international cellphones, together with these made by Apple.

The feedback come after some workers of presidency businesses have stated they’ve had been instructed to not use iPhones for work. Notices issued to authorities workers and state-owned companies, calling for utilization of home manufacturers of cellphones, have additionally been circulating on-line. China’s often strict web censors have but to delete claims concerning the restrictions.

The firm’s inventory value initially fell following the studies, which had steered that Apple may lose floor in China, the world’s largest smartphone market.

Calling for curbs on the usage of international expertise by authorities workers isn’t new. China has discouraged officers from adopting international cellphones for at the very least a decade and instructed authorities businesses to interchange American laptop servers and different units with home ones.

The United States has additionally positioned restrictions on China’s telecommunications big, Huawei, and issued controls on exports of superior U.S. semiconductor expertise to China. Some U.S. states have moved to limit the usage of TikTok, the social media app, by authorities workers.

Still, any main issues for Apple in China would sign an escalation within the tensions between Beijing and Washington. The American expertise big counts on China for roughly 20 p.c of its income and far of its manufacturing, which helps tons of of 1000’s of native jobs.

Smartphones signify the newest salvo within the U.S.-China tech struggle after the launch final week of Huawei’s Mate 60 Pro. Chinese nationalists celebrated the cellphone’s superior options as an indication that China had developed its personal chips, however the system is now the goal of a U.S. evaluate into whether or not it violates the embargo on U.S. semiconductor expertise imposed by the Biden administration.

Apple has not stated something publicly concerning the current studies. At an occasion in California on Tuesday, the corporate unveiled the iPhone 15, its latest mannequin.

Olivia Wang contributed reporting.