The day after tomorrow we end a year for Apple that can be described as one of the most eventful in its history. And look, we have 2020 and 2021 as very recent pandemic years, but 2022 has been noted for both good and bad news.
This year also leaves us with promises and warnings for the future. Several external factors have warned that curves are coming and therefore the company could have a very different future from what Tim Cook himself imagined a few years ago.
Good products, bad economics
2022 was ruled by the iPhone 14, no doubt. Apple’s phone comes with incremental improvements, but ultimately they improve upon the already excellent cameras of its predecessors and introduce pleasant surprises like the Dynamic Island.
The Mac Studio was also one of the boots 2022: finally, Apple Silicon demonstrates its potential with a computer already dedicated to professionals and an M1 Ultra chip that exceeds the most powerful Intel Mac Pros under certain conditions.
But 2022 has also been loaded with more bitter news: the war in Ukraine, inflation and the devaluation of the euro against the dollar have caused huge price hike both in its products and in its services. This could have led to a drop in sales, which very recent rumors say could force Apple to make decisions for the future.
the delay in the release of new Mac models It may also be caused by COVID in China and the global logistics crisis. It’s not that 2022 was bad, but the continued leaks of alleged launch cancellations for that year have us suspicious of an Apple that hasn’t been able to get everything it wanted.
The result: a a terrible year on the stock market with a drop in market value of a trillion dollars. From the $180 we saw at the start of the year in its stock value to a low of $125 these days.
2023, a year of recovery
And the future? There are reasons to think more limited growth now. New European laws will force Apple to use USB-C everywhere, which will hamper sales of its own cables. We could also see the end of the App Store as an exclusive store for downloading apps on iOS and iPadOS, which could lead to lower revenues for the services division.
Laws and measures to secure long-term production could complicate growth in the year ahead
You also have to think about the movements to diversify production: they will solve the logistical problems, but they will do it in the long term. And if 2023 continues to be a year of rising prices, sales won’t increase much either. In the short term, in 2023 and perhaps 2024, we could see an economy and an Apple that we would still have trouble seeing grow.
We have hope in new products. Rumors already bet very strongly for a 2023 in which we will see the arrival of an augmented and/or virtual reality viewer, something that can revolutionize this market or remove its foundations. This could increase the value of Apple, a new product that attracts the world’s attention.
In the longer term we could witness this phenomenon a second time with the Apple car. In Cupertino they are looking to break into a very tough market, but even so, and softening their initial ambitions, they will break into a product that could change not just the car but the entire mobility industry. It all depends on the ecosystem of services that are attached to this car.
With everything, and I hope I’m wrong, I wouldn’t bet on an apple growing dramatically over the next twelve months.. It takes time to recover from a year 2022 that has not been pleasant, and it is necessary to be prepared for scenarios in which laws and regulations can completely change the scenario.
