A PROVINCIAL court in China has ordered a ban on the sale of several older Apple Inc. iPhone models in China for violating two patents of chipmaker Qualcomm Inc., although Apple said all of its phone models remained on sale on the mainland.

The case, brought by Qualcomm, is part of a global patents dispute between the two U.S. companies that includes dozens of lawsuits.

It creates uncertainty over Apple’s business in one of its biggest markets at a time when its falling share prices reflect concerns over waning demand for new iPhones.

Apple said Monday it had filed a request for reconsideration with the court, the first step in appealing the ban.

Qualcomm said the Fuzhou Intermediate People’s Court in Fujian Province found Apple infringed two patents held by the chipmaker and ordered an immediate ban on sales of older iPhone models, from the 6S through the X.

China is Apple’s third-largest market, accounting for about one-fifth of Apple’s US$265.6 billion in sales in its most recent fiscal year.

Qualcomm, the biggest supplier of chips for mobile phones, filed its case in China in late 2017, arguing that Apple infringed patents on features related to resizing photographs and managing apps on a touch screen.

Apple responded by saying that “Qualcomm’s effort to ban our products is another desperate move by a company whose illegal practices are under investigation by regulators around the world.”

To enforce the ban, Qualcomm separately will have to file complaints in what is known as an enforcement tribunal, where Apple will also have a chance to appeal.

The specific iPhone models affected by the preliminary ruling in China are the iPhone 6S, iPhone 6S Plus, iPhone 7, iPhone 7 Plus, iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus and iPhone X.(SD-Agencies)