During a press conference Friday, President Donald Trump expressed nonchalance toward the possible impact that a WeChat ban might have on Apple’s business.
Trump recently signed a pair of executive orders that would bar any U.S. transactions with Chinese companies ByteDance and Tencent, owners of apps TikTok and WeChat, respectively. That ban would effectively ban both apps from the United States, although its global effect is unclear.
Apple has joined a growing number of other major companies including Disney, Ford, and Walmart, calling for the president to end the executive orders.
A Bloomberg report during a Friday morning White House press conference if he was concerned about the effect the ban might have on iPhone sales in China and other markets. Trump responded “whatever.”
“Gotta do what’s good in terms of the security of our country,” Trump said. “We’ve been very badly let down by China.”
If Apple is forced to remove the WeChat app from its App Stores around the globe, including China, it could see its smartphone market share drop precipitously in China. In a Bloomberg survey conducted in August, 95% of those responding in China said that they would give up their iPhones for Androids than lose WeChat.
Analyst Ming-Chi Kup has predicted Apple’s annual global iPhone shipments could fall by as much as 30% if it is forced to remove WeChat from its App Stores around the globe.
