Apple breaks year-long streak of falling revenue with strong holiday sales

Slumping global demand for smartphones did not bring down earnings, but investors were wary of decline in sales in China

Apple has ended the quarter with its first revenue gain in over a year, but the company still struggled to cope with a decline in global smartphone demand. The company posted $119.58bn in revenue and $2.18 in earnings per share (EPS), beating Wall Street expectations of $117.91bn in quarterly revenue and $2.10 in EPS. Apple broke its four-quarter streak of declining revenue with a reported 2% growth in sales. Shares dropped in after-hours trading.

However, the news wasn't all rosy for the iPhone maker. The company's sales in China, its third-largest market, dropped from $23.9bn to $20.8bn. Global iPad sales dropped to $7bn in the most recent quarter, from $9bn in the same quarter last year.