(Yicai) May 13 -- Apple has dropped its iPhone 16 prices in the Chinese mainland after several consecutive quarters of declining revenue in the market.

Apple has told Chinese distributors to cut the price of its latest iPhone series, according to a notice the firm issued yesterday.

Yicai visited two Apple stores in Shenzhen and found the iPhone 16 discounted by as much as CNY1,400 (USD194.75). The price has dropped even more on some e-commerce sites, with certain products from the series down CNY2,000 compared with the price on Apple's website.

"When Apple officially announces a price reduction, we implement a uniform adjustment," an employee at an Apple-authorized retailer told Yicai. The store will not independently make arbitrary price cuts and has not yet received accurate information on when this adjustment will end, he noted.

Prices may fluctuate in the short term, but the supply of Apple products remains relatively abundant, the person pointed out.

Apple's revenue in China has declined for several straight quarters, with its income falling 11 percent to USD18.5 billion in the fiscal first quarter that ended Dec. 28 from a year earlier. The figure dropped to USD16 billion in the three months ended March 29.

China's Xiaomi, Huawei, OPPO, and Vivo saw their domestic shipments grow in the first quarter of this year from a year ago, while those of Apple tumbled 9 percent, according to data from market research firm International Data Corporation. 

Under sales pressure, Apple has begun to lower prices easily and explore different ways to attract new customers, with the firm reportedly developing a foldable phone that is expected to launch next year.

The date of Apple's foldable phone launch depends to some extent on the sales performance of the iPhone, an industry analyst said to Yicai. If sales are weak, the company may need to accelerate its release to attract consumer attention, the person added.

Editor: Martin Kadiev