Apple’s latest iPhone models are shown on display at its Regent Street, London store on the launch day of the iPhone 17.

Arjun Kharpal | CNBC

Apple will hit a record level of iPhone shipments this year driven by its latest models and a resurgence in its key market of China, research firm IDC has forecast.

The company will ship 247.4 million iPhones in 2025, up just over 6% year-on-year, IDC forecast in a report on Tuesday. That’s more than the 236 million it sold in 2021, when the iPhone 13 was released.

Apple’s predicted surge is “thanks to the phenomenal success of its latest iPhone 17 series,” Nabila Popal, senior research director at IDC, said in a statement, adding that in China, “massive demand for iPhone 17 has significantly accelerated Apple’s performance.”

Shipments are a term used by analysts to refer to the number of devices sent by a vendor to its sales channels like e-commerce partners or stores. They do not directly equate to sales but indicate the demand expected by a company for their products.

When it launched in September, investors saw the iPhone 17 series as a key set of devices for Apple, which was facing increased competition in China and questions about its artificial intelligence strategy, as Android rivals were powering on.

Apple’s shipments are expected to jump 17% year-on-year in China in the fourth quarter, IDC said, leading the research firm to forecast 3% growth in the market this year versus a previous projection of a 1% decline.

In China, local players like Huawei have been taking away market share from Apple.

IDC’s report follows on from Counterpoint Research last week which forecast Apple to ship more smartphones than Samsung in 2025 for the first time in 14 years.

Bloomberg reported last month that Apple could delay the release of the base model of its next device, the iPhone 18, until 2027, which would break its regular cycle of releasing all of its phones in fall each year. IDC said this could mean Apple’s shipments may drop by 4.2% next year.

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An aerial view of a cargo ship being loaded with shipping containers at the Port of Baltimore in Baltimore, Maryland, on August 7, 2025.

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Postal carriers across Europe are planning to suspend some shipments to the U.S. as the nations prepare for the end of a longstanding trade rule.

Certain shipments from Germany, Spain, France, Belgium, Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Norway and Switzerland are due to be paused in the coming days and weeks after President Donald Trump signed an executive order ending the century-old “de minimis” exemption.

The trade policy, sometimes referred to as a “loophole,” has allowed shipments valued under $800 to enter the U.S. virtually duty-free. The practice is set to end for imports from around the globe on Friday following Trump’s executive order.

The de minimis exemption for goods coming from China and Hong Kong, which have long accounted for the bulk of those shipments, ended in May.

The suspensions will impact shipments valued under $800, and largely exclude gifts and letters. Most of the countries said they have to pause shipments because their systems weren’t built for the new requirements and they’re unsure how to properly process the shipments under the new rules.

In a Friday statement, German-based international shipping company DHL said Deutsche Post and DHL Parcel Germany will no longer be able to accept and transport parcels destined for the U.S. It said “key questions remain unresolved, particularly regarding how and by whom customs duties will be collected in the future, what additional data will be required, and how the data transmission to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection will be carried out.”

Customers will still be able to ship goods via DHL Express, which is more expensive.

National post offices in Spain, France and Belgium issued similar notices.

In a news release, Spain’s national post office Correos said it learned of the detailed requirements necessary to comply with the executive order on Aug. 15 and hasn’t had enough time to change its systems. 

“This situation forces Correos, along with all postal operators that manage shipments destined for the United States, to substantially modify their processes and increase shipment controls to implement the new customs requirements, significantly impacting international postal logistics and e-commerce flows,” Correos said, adding the suspension took effect on Monday.

It said it is working to resume the shipments “as quickly as possible.”

Belgium’s post office said it was suspending shipments beginning on Saturday while France’s La Poste said shipments would be suspended beginning on Monday. 

Meanwhile, Finland’s post office Posti stopped accepting goods bound for the U.S. on Saturday but later added it could no longer accept gifts or letters either because “several airlines have now refused to transport any postal items to the United States.” 

The carriers said they expect the suspensions to be temporary. The pauses could delay some shipments, but are not expected to affect most international commerce.

Larger retailers, both domestic and international, don’t tend to use the de minimis exemption that often because they ship their goods via containers to U.S. warehouses and pay tariffs on the goods. Two major exceptions are Temu and Shein, which popularized the use of de minimis and relied on it for the bulk of their shipments to U.S. consumers. Since de minimis ended for goods shipped from China, demand has fallen for Shein and Temu as prices have risen.

The suspended shipments are expected to impact smaller orders from Americans who are shopping from smaller European businesses directly.

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A package from Temu is seen in front of a screen with the Temu logo. (Photo by Nikos Pekiaridis/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

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Bargain Chinese retailer Temu changed its business model in the U.S. as the Trump administration’s new rules on low-value shipments took effect on Friday.

In recent days, Temu has abruptly shifted its website and app to only display listings for products shipped from U.S.-based warehouses. Items shipped directly from China, which previously blanketed the site, are now labeled as out of stock.

Temu made a name for itself in the U.S. as a destination for ultra-discounted items shipped direct from China, such as $5 sneakers and $1.50 garlic presses. It’s been able to keep prices low because of the so-called de minimis rule, which has allowed items worth $800 or less to enter the country duty-free since 2016.

The loophole expired Friday at 12:01 a.m. EDT as a result of an executive order signed by President Donald Trump in April. Trump briefly suspended the de minimis rule in February before reinstating the provision days later as customs officials struggled to process and collect tariffs on a mountain of low-value packages.

The end of de minimis, as well as Trump’s new 145% tariffs on China, has forced Temu to raise prices, suspend its aggressive online advertising push and now alter the selection of goods available to American shoppers to circumvent higher levies.

A Temu spokesperson confirmed to CNBC that all sales in the U.S. are now handled by local sellers and fulfilled “from within the country” as part of the company’s efforts to improve service levels.

“Temu has been actively recruiting U.S. sellers to join the platform,” the spokesperson said. “The move is designed to help local merchants reach more customers and grow their businesses.”

Before the change, shoppers that attempted to purchase Temu products shipped from China were confronted with “import charges” between 130% and 150%. The fees often cost more than the individual item and more than doubled the price of many orders.

Temu advertises that local products have “no import charges” and “no extra charges upon delivery.”

The company, which is owned by Chinese e-commerce giant PDD Holdings, has gradually built up its inventory in the U.S. over the past year in anticipation of escalating trade tensions and the removal of de minimis.

Shein, which has also benefited from the loophole, moved to raise prices last week. The fast-fashion retailer added a banner at checkout that states, “Tariffs are included in the price you pay. You’ll never have to pay extra at delivery.”

Many third-party sellers on Amazon rely on Chinese manufacturers to source or assemble their products. The company’s Temu competitor, called Amazon Haul, has relied on de minimis to ship products priced at $20 or less directly from China to the U.S.

Amazon said this week following a dustup with the White House that it considered showing tariff-related costs on Haul products ahead of the de minimis cutoff. It’s since scrapped those plans.

Prior to Trump’s second term in office, the Biden administration had also looked to curtail the provision. Critics of the de minimis provision argue that it harms American businesses and facilitates shipments of fentanyl and other illicit substances on the claims that the packages are less likely to be inspected by customs agents.

— CNBC’s Gabrielle Fonrouge contributed to this report.

WATCH: Trump tariffs mean higher prices, big losses for Amazon sellers

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Dell, HP and Lenovo laptops on display at the Consumer Electronics Show 2025 in Las Vegas, on Jan. 8, 2025.

Artur Widak | Nurphoto | Getty Images

Personal computer shipments rose in the first quarter of the year as companies sped up deliveries to gear up for incoming tariffs.

Research firm Canalys estimates that shipment for PCs jumped more than 9% during the period, while data from IDC Research pegged the growth at nearly 5% from a year earlier. That equated to roughly 63 million units.

Companies worldwide are bracing for the knock on effects from President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariff plans, which threaten to suppress demand for computers and other electronics that largely rely on Asian countries for manufacturing.

“The market is clearly showing some level of pull-in in the first quarter this year as both vendors and end-users brace for the impact of US tariffs,” IDC wrote.

Concerns about a slowing economy and a decline in discretionary spending have pressured global markets in recent days, and pushed some consumers to stock up on products affected by the levies. The PC market has been largely stagnant in recent years following a surge in purchases during the Covid-19 pandemic. In 2024, shipments increased 1% after two straight years of declines, according to IDC.

The latest round includes a 104% tariff on goods imported from China, home to hefty amounts of PC manufacturing. Vietnam, Thailand and India, which are responsible for a growing number of electronics production, also face import tariffs.

IDC’s Ryan Reith told CNBC that some original design manufacturers have already weighed holding back sending out additional PCs as the retaliatory tariffs went into effect.

“The real interesting stuff is in front of us,” Reith said. “It’s either going to be inventory backup, you keep sending something somewhere where no one’s buying it, and it builds up inventory, or nothing gets sent over here.”

Canalys said notebook shipments grew 10% during the period to more than 49 million units, while desktop shipments rose 8%. The U.S. saw the biggest increase, but shipments will likely ease as “inventory levels normalize” and higher prices kick in, the firm said.

IDC estimates shipments from Apple jumped 14% in the first quarter from a year earlier, while ASUS shipments rose more than 11%. Shipments from Lenovo and HP — the top two PC makers — grew about 11% and 6%, respectively.

— CNBC’s Kif Leswing contributed to this report.

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