Apple is very risk-averse when it comes to preserving its revenue intact and has recently reacted immediately when the local currency of a country it sells in devalues in any fairly significant manner against the dollar.
When the Turkish lira was in freefall last November, for instance, Apple ceased the sales of its AirPods, iPads, iPhones, Macs and Watch Series in the country with little warning, then reopened purchases from its Turkish website with prices jacked up by more than twenty percent to compensate for the lira’s devaluation.
In Russia, however, where international sanctions brought upon for the conflict in Ukraine mean not only a significant drop in the value of the ruble, but also disconnecting a number of Russian banks from the international payment platform SWIFT, and a ban on the export of American products and services to the country, Apple reacted on the same day by completely halting all sales in its Russian store.
It is not clear if and when Apple will renew its sales in Russia, as the SWIFT exclusion and foreign currency transaction limitations complicate the picture quite a bit and have never been brought down on a country with the size of the Russian economy before.
I am deeply concerned with the situation in Ukraine. We’re doing all we can for our teams there and will be supporting local humanitarian efforts. I am thinking of the people who are right now in harm’s way and joining all those calling for peace.
— Tim Cook (@tim_cook) February 25, 2022
