APPLE Inc. jumped to the top of the Chinese market by adapting the iPhone to local tastes. It’s using the same recipe with the Apple Watch.

    The new timepiece is available in gold — appealing to China’s appetite for luxury. Apple also is showcasing the WeChat messaging service from China’s Tencent Holdings Ltd., an app used by half a billion people.

    The smartwatch starts at 2,588 yuan (US$413) in China, putting Apple in position to boost sales beyond the US$182 billion in revenue from iPhones, iPads and Macs last year.

    Apple’s China sales rose 70 percent in the past quarter, helped by the introduction of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus. By moving to a screen that’s bigger than a traditional smartphone’s but smaller than a tablet’s, the iPhones were popular in a market where consumers prefer to carry one device.

    The Apple Watch is “going to be a massive hit in China,” said Shaun Rein, managing director of China Market Research in Shanghai. “It’s a brand that’s aspirational, but it’s not so over the top in price.”

    Greater China contributed more than US$16 billion to Apple’s sales in the past quarter, about 21 percent of the company’s total. The country still ranks behind the Americas and Europe in total revenue. Yet chief executive officer Tim Cook has said China eventually could become the company’s biggest market.

    China has been a key component of Apple’s marketing of the watch since it was first announced in September, with the device gracing the cover of China Vogue before any other magazine.

    China prices for the watch were released Tuesday after Cook showed off the device in San Francisco. The Apple Watch Sport is the least expensive model at 2,588 yuan. The 18-karat gold Apple Watch Edition will cost about 126,800 yuan, more than the price of a Volkswagen AG Polo.

    “For an international brand, plus add gold into the equation, and I think that combination is going to appeal in China,” said Chris Jones, an analyst for Canalys, noting the popularity of gold-colored iPhones.

    The most expensive watches could be a tough sell in some quarters, though. Conspicuous consumption has become a hot issue as President Xi Jinping tackles the waste and corruption that he said threatens the Communist Party’s rule.

    China’s sales of luxury goods have been damped by the government’s antigraft campaign, which has curbed gift-giving. Luxury spending in the Chinese mainland fell for the first time in 2014, slipping 1 percent to 115 billion yuan, according to consultancy Bain & Co.

    (SD-Agencies)