Although some Taiwan makers in the iPhone X supply chain have been affected by Apple's move to scale back shipments of the device, some others including Career Technology, E&R Engineering, ShunSin Technology and Superior Plating Technology (SPT) are poised to benefit from new or increased orders from the client to support production of its next-generation iPad, MacBook and Apple Watch models in 2018, according to industry sources.

These makers have cutting-edge technologies or have newly tapped into the supply chains of Apple's consumer devices. Among them, SPT, which boasts pearl bright nickel processing technology, is ready to enjoy sizeable orders from Apple, which will incorporate the technology to process adapters for its new-generation iPhone, iPad and MacBook devices, slated for debut starting in March 2018. In the first three quarters of 2017, SPT suffered a net negative EPS of NT$1.69 (US$0.0576), but it is expected to swing to profitability in 2018, bolstered by robust Apple orders.

Career, an Apple Watch supply chain partner, has recently received rush orders for supplying flexible circuit antennas for new iPhone devices, diverted from Japan's Murata, which was unable to deliver shipments in time, the sources said. The company has completed an NT$3 billion capital increment project to expand production facilities, a move deemed to support expanded cooperation with Apple in 2018. The company also anticipates a major turnaround in revenue and profit performances in the year from operating losses seen in the first three quarters of 2017.

Also recording losses in the first nine months of 2017, E&R Engineering, which designs and manufactures semiconductor machines and packaging materials, is also upbeat about turning profitable in 2018, as it has newly joined the Apple Watch supply chain, the sources said.

ShunSin, an IC packaging arm of the Foxconn Group, has also tapped into Apple's supply chains in the first quarter of 2018 to provide SiP (system in package) services, the sources said, adding it is expected to see an impressive pickup in revenues and earnings in the year, compared to an EPS of only NT$0.97 for the January-September 2017.