China locks down area around ‘iPhone city’ in blow to Apple

Foxconn employees take shuttle buses to head home from Zhengzhou. Picture: VCG/Getty Images

China has ordered a seven-day lockdown of the area around Foxconn Technology Group’s main plant in Zhengzhou, a move that will severely curtail shipments in and out of the world’s largest iPhone factory.

The lockdown will last until November 9, the local government said in a statement posted to its WeChat account. It ordered people and vehicles off the streets except for medical or other essential reasons, a prohibition that threatens to cut off the flow of additional workers and components needed to rev up production ahead of Christmas.