Japan's Nikkei reported on Monday that the world's largest technology corporation began sharply reducing buying of liquid crystal displays about a month ago from suppliers like Japan Display Inc and Sharp Corp.
The report, later matched by the Wall Street Journal, comes as hard-charging rivals like Samsung Electronics, which makes phones based on Google Inc's popular Android software, continue to expand market share globally.
Apple stock slid more than 4 percent to an intraday low of $498.51 -- a level not seen since February 16, 2012 -- before bouncing back to trade just above $500 at midday. The news also hurt shares of suppliers such as Cirrus Logic Inc, which dived 9 percent.
Some analysts argued that Apple and its manufacturing partners had struggled with quality issues that might have curtailed production times.
Source: Reuters
