Apple could soon see a shortage in supply of the iPhone as key manufacturers, Foxconn and Unimicron, have halted operations in Shenzhen, China, due to the COVID-19 lockdown. Due to the COVID-19 lockdown, only essential services are allowed to open and operate. However, Foxconn and Unimicron don't come under the essential services and as a result, the factories have been shut down.

Not only Apple, but other companies such as OPPO, Vivo, and even automakers such as Toyota and Volkswagen will be affected by the lockdown. Shenzhen is one of the most active industrial areas of China, and a longer lockdown would see the supply chains of these companies disrupted. As Reuters reports, the shutdown has already started "raising concerns over supply chain disruptions."

In a statement to Reuters, Paul Weedman said:

Imagine you have a factory of 100 people and all of a sudden you can’t do anything - you can’t fulfill your existing orders, you can’t accept new orders. The impact is not 2 or 3 weeks, but 3-6 months.

The lockdown due to the recent surge in COVID-19 cases is said to last until March 20. However, the factories have a measure in place so that a long-term disruption isn't there. Sources told the publication that the companies will create a "closed management system" or a bio-bubble so that workers are allowed to work in the factories. As 9to5Mac notes, a number of companies have also "relocated production to other sites that are still operating regularly", so the impact won't be as bad as expected.