Apple's Tim Cook visits China

Apple chief executive Tim Cook has arrived in Shanghai, to preside the launch of a new flagship Apple store in downtown Shanghai on Thursday, local media reported. He last visited China in March 2023.

Observers said that Cook was in Shanghai to inaugurate the new Apple store and attend a series of activities to boost Apple's business in China.

According to Cook's post on Chinese social media account Sina Weibo, he spent Wednesday morning walking the Bund with Chinese movie star Zheng Kai, and had a classic Shanghai breakfast. On Tuesday, he also posted, offering his congratulation to the opening of the new store at Shanghai's Jing'an district.

Sina Weibo user named "Keneng Youdian Xie" commented that Cook might be the most frequent visiting U.S. CEO to China. Other netizens said they were looking forward to meeting Cook at the opening of the new Shanghai store.

Apple Jing'an store is the highest-standard Apple store in the Chinese mainland. According to media reports, the store covers an area of 3,835 square meters, with a total investment of 83.4 million yuan ($11.61 million). Only the Apple store on New York City's Fifth Avenue costs more.

Apple is expected to bring high-quality devices and services to Chinese consumers, as the company faces increasingly fierce competition from a slew of Chinese local brands, industry insiders said.

Apple iPhones have struggled in the Chinese mainland market over the first six weeks this year, with sales plunging by 24 percent year-on-year, a report by market research organization Counterpoint Research said on March 5, noting that the U.S. tech giant's market share has been squeezed by aggressive pricing from OPPO, Vivo and Xiaomi.

Experts said that Apple's move is understandable since China remains its second largest market after the U.S., underscoring the company's confidence in exploring the massive Chinese market, while adding that Apple needs to ramp up investment in research and development to make new technological breakthroughs and regain lost market share in one of the world's most important markets.