Foxconn's Founder Asked China to Remove COVID Restrictions - WSJ

The Wall Street Journal said that Terry Gou, the creator of Apple supplier Foxconn, had warned China that its zero-COVID policy would jeopardize its position as the second-largest economy in the global supply chain.

The appeal, sent by Gou in a letter more than a month ago, played a crucial role in pushing China's government to immediately reopen the economy and drop its zero-tolerance COVID-19 policy, according to a report published on Thursday citing sources with knowledge of the issue.

The office of Gou issued a statement "vehemently disputing" the article's claims. The largest iPhone producer, Foxconn, declined to comment, and China's State Council Information Office could not be reached immediately for comment.

Gou left Foxconn in 2019 and no longer maintains an official position inside the company, although he remains influential.

The Zhengzhou factory of the Taiwanese corporation, which had a month-long disruption in November, has eased its "closed-loop" management restrictions on Thursday.

The Zhengzhou factory has been struggling with significant COVID restrictions, which have led to worker dissatisfaction over working conditions and a 11.4% year-over-year decline in November revenue.

Some Wall Street analysts reduced their iPhone shipping forecasts for the crucial Christmas quarter as a result of disruptions at the iPhone's primary production facility.

The newspaper reported that Chinese health officials and government advisors jumped on Gou's letter to make the point that the government needed to accelerate its efforts to eliminate its stringent COVID-19 regulations.