Managers at the world’s largest iPhone factory breathed a sigh of relief when the local government in Zhengzhou lifted a five-day lockdown on most of the Chinese city on Tuesday.
After more than a month of disruption triggered by a Covid-19 outbreak at the plant, “it reminds us that we will get back to normal eventually,” said a human resources executive at Foxconn, which owns and runs the factory town.
But the troubles are far from over. The Taiwanese contract manufacturer is still struggling to staff assembly lines at the peak of Apple’s pre-holiday high season, and delays in deliveries of premium iPhone models, almost all made in Zhengzhou, are growing.