Steve Jobs resigns as Apple CEO, shares tumble
Following news that Steve Jobs has resigned as CEO of Apple, to be replaced by Tim Cook, shares of the world’s most valuable technology company tumbled as much as 7 per cent.
The 56-year-old, who has transformed the technology world with the iPhone and the iPad in the past four years, announced the decision to Apple employees by email, saying he could no longer fulfil the duties of the job, raising fears his health has deteriorated further.
Mr Jobs, who fought and survived a rare form of pancreatic cancer, is widely considered to be so influential within Apple that he is often credited with almost single-handedly taking the company to its current estimated worth of around $157 billion (£95 billion).
In a knee-jerk reaction to the news, Apple shares traded in Frankfurt were down 5.8 percent, at points falling to as low as 7 per pent, just as they did in January (by 7.5 per cent) when Jobs took medical leave.
His resignation has opened the door for rival Samsung Electronics at a crucial time in the battle for smartphone supremacy in salesrooms and courtrooms around the world.
More than any other firm, Samsung’s fortunes are tied to Apple, both as a competitor and supplier of components.
The companies are fierce rivals, with Samsung’s Galaxy range of smartphones and tablet computers running on Google’s Android operating system seen as the main competitor to Apple’s game-changing iPhones and iPads.
“Even before Steve Jobs’ (resignation), Samsung was getting more and more optimistic that they can actually take on Apple in the smartphone arena,” said Mark Newman, a former director of strategy at Samsung.
News of Jobs’ move helped Samsung shares rise 2.5 per cent in Seoul on Thursday.