back to article News of Steve Jobs' death causes market jitters

Apple stocks are now trading higher on the Frankfurt market, after falling earlier today on news of Steve Jobs' death. The stock was down 5 per cent this morning to around €270 at one point, but the Germans have since recovered from their initial dismay and sent the stock up 1.9 per cent to almost €284. Shares of the company …

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  1. Mayhem

    Scary thought

    That a company is so successful when a single product, the iPhone, makes up something in the region of 40% of the profit.

    What is even scarier is that the company has gone from being ranked around 120th in the world to top 20, again based primarily on a cellphone.

    We truly have become a consumer culture, driven by trends.

    Now where do they go once everyone who wants one has one?

    1. Gene Cash Silver badge

      Well, actually

      You forget that the first Apple totally-nuts-breakout product was the iPod. Then you also forget that the iPhone for all its issues, was the first decent mostly-usable smartphone. It showed up how crap the Nokia and Ericsson stuff was.

      *THE* thing Steve was good at was industrial design & usablility. The Apple II, NeXT, Mac, iMac, iPod, iPhone, are all slick 'n' pretty.

      Buying "oooh shiney" has been a "trend" for a very long time.

      (Fanboi Disclaimer: never owned an Apple product, myself)

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      "Now where do they go once everyone who wants one has one?"

      Simple - They bring out the next model, since jesus phones are mostly about style (i.e. having to have one cos anyone who's anybody has one), the next model becomes the one you have to have.

    3. vincent himpe
      Black Helicopters

      even more astounding..

      is that in times of global economy struggles an OIL company is the most successfull ....

      The economy is in shambles and big oil has us all by our private parts at 4$ a gallon...

      Wanna boost the economy ? Force big oil to sell fuel back at 1$ a gallon... you'll see an instant economy boost ! . people will have more money in their pocket which they will spend...

      They are raking in monstrous profits and pay less taxes than they give money to their CEO...

      black helicopters because , well you know... big oil protects their interests...

      1. dogged

        $4/gallon?

        At £1.36/litre, I wish I had your problems.

      2. nyelvmark
        Meh

        ...big oil has us all by our private parts at 4$ a gallon...

        Data from the UK's Automobile Association:

        http://www.theaa.com/onlinenews/allaboutcars/fuel/2011/august2011.pdf

        http://www.theaa.com/onlinenews/allaboutcars/fuel/2011/august2011-overseas.pdf

        Summary: US petrol price in August about 60 UK pence per litre. European petrol prices in August between 109 pence (Estonia) and 168 pence (Norway) with most places in the 125p - 135p bracket.

        Your private parts may be more robust than you suspect.

  2. Peter Gathercole Silver badge

    I can see a scenario

    where Steve was hanging on to life so that he could see how Tim Cook handled a product launch. Having seen that it was not a total disaster, he was content to hand over in the most final of ways, knowing that the markets had accepted the post-Steve Apple.

    I am surprised at myself though. I thought that when Steve finally reached the ultimate purpose to life, that I would just accept it. I was actually quite moved and more than a little tearful when I heard the news on the radio as I was getting up this morning.

    Shows that his influence could touch even this old cynic.

  3. Adam Trickett
    WTF?

    Market is stupid

    Poor old Steve knew he wasn't well, and company knew he wasn't well, in fact world plus dog knew he wasn't well.

    Why were the idiots in the stock markets surprised...?

    1. Microphage
      Devil

      re: Market is stupid

      @Adam Trickett: "Why were the idiots in the stock markets surprised...?"

      They weren't, but they did figure the stock would tank briefly and then they could buy back their shares at the low price. To help it on the way down they probably sold on some stock to help it on the way.

      Stock Broker: Steve Jobs has died

      Other Stock Broker: Sell apple and buy life insurance or medical stocks ...

      .

  4. Steve X
    Thumb Down

    hardly *market* jitters

    Just jitters in the share price of one company. Apple isn't the whole market (yet).

  5. ideapete

    The meaning of life ?

    We often ask ourselves "What is the meaning of Life ? "

    Then we see what Steve Jobs did and it becomes really clear

    ‘Stay Hungry, Stay foolish,’” Yes indeed !

  6. Yet Another Anonymous coward Silver badge

    Market experts

    Jobs hasn't been running the company for > 1 year

    He officially retired a couple of months ago

    Everybody knew he was seriously ill and wasn't going to make a serious return to running Apple

    How does his dying make the company suddenly worth 5% less?

    1. jai

      because the markets also listen to the 'analysts' who were positive there'd be a iphone5 this week and that the iPod classic was getting the axe.

  7. LarsG

    Market Jitters

    Probably because of the lackluster update in that the iPhone looks just like the last iPhone, the 'markets' reacted because they knew Jobs hadn't been around properly for the last year, and new iPhone reflected the fact. Had he been in top form something iconic would have appeared rather than what did appear. Still would not have bought one though.

  8. Harmless
    Windows

    Slow decline coming

    The company lost its way without him before, and it will again.

    Unless he's written a comprehensive guide to "What would Steve do?" AND the company actually follows it to the letter forevermore, I predict a slow decline.

    RIP Mr Jobs

  9. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    I wouldn't mind betting...

    ...that the iPhone 5 was held back for extra tweaking ... perhaps to deliver something beyond Jobs' death, to iPhone fans, like comming with a specially recorded video/audio/literary library tribute to Steve.

    Knowing me, I'm probably wildly off the mark, though.

  10. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Shares in the Jesus-mobe and fondleslab

    bwaahhh !!!

  11. Rolf Howarth

    Where do Apple go next?

    Apple will cope fine without SJ. Although he was was very heavily involved in the product development lifecycle, he didn't personally invent everything Apple did, you know. What he did do is surround himself with good people, motivate them, and know how to pick a winner. Those people are still there. Most importantly he taught them the value of design and not to accept compromises.

    Apple is defined not so much by what it releases as what it doesn't release, namely crap. Sure they have some flops, like MobileMac, but for every product that's released there are dozens of internal prototypes that are developed, almost to completion, but then dropped because they're not good enough. What makes Apple different is having the courage of its convictions to maintain those standards, even in the face of all the pundits telling it what it has to do. (Remember everyone who said Apple just had to bring out a PDA? They ignored them and waited until they were ready, then came out with the iPhone and changed the world.)

    Steve Jobs is gone, but the company he built that epitomises those values still exists, so there's nothing to suggest they won't carry on producing great products just as they have in the past.

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