Apple's Chinese revenues surge 112% in Q3 to lead worldwide growth

Apple's Chinese revenues shot ahead 112 percent year-over-year during the June quarter to over $13.2 billion, reflecting the growing importance of the country to Apple's bottom line even as other regions also showed significant growth.

The Americas continued to be Apple's best-performing region in terms of overall revenue, rising 15 percent to $20.2 billion. China, however, easily eclipsed Europe, which advanced 19 percent year-over-year but only to $10.3 billion. Sequentially, China has been ahead of Europe for multiple quarters.

Japan revenues were up a comparatively small 9 percent from 2014 to just under $2.9 billion. Apple's next-most aggressive growth took place in the rest of the Asia Pacific market, which increased 26 percent to a little under $3 billion.

Analysts have typically credited Apple's success in China to the popularity of the iPhone. Although the device is more expensive than most smartphones, and out of the price range of most Chinese, the country has also seen the growth of middle and upper classes which can both afford one and see it as a status symbol.

Many Chinese also rely on a smartphone as their primary computing device, making it easier to justify financially.

Apple sold 47.5 million iPhones worldwide during the June quarter, contributing to the lion's share of the company's $49.6 billion in revenue. iPhone units were up 35 percent year-over-year, though Apple didn't specify sales by region.