China’s smallest carriers get new iPhones

Apple (AAPL.NASDAQ) will supply its newest phones to China’s smallest mobile carriers, Bloomberg reported. On Tuesday, Apple said it would offer the iPhone 5S and iPhone 5C to China Unicom (CHU.NYSE, 0762.HKG) and China Telecom (CHA.NYSE, 0728.HKG), but they are yet to be offered to the largest mobile phone service provider, China Mobile (CHL.NYSE, 0941.HKG).  The deal means that Apple’s new smartphones will only be available to about 37% of China’s 1.2 billion wireless subscribers. The cheaper iPhone 5C will start from RMB4,488 (US$733) whereas the more expensive iPhone 5S will start from US$864. Local smartphone brands retail for as low as US$100.