HTC sales slump 36.45% to a seven-year low as Apple begins a talent raid

Taiwanese smartphone maker HTC has reported another drop in sales, amidst reports Apple is launching a talent raid against the company.

The company reported monthly revenues in February of just $NT7.225 billion ($A266m), down a massive 36.45% from $NT11.37 billion a year earlier.

February’s result represents a 25.29% month-on-month fall from January, when the company reported $NT9.6 billion in sales.

The company’s January result, in turn, was down 37.75% year-on-year from $NT15.5 billion a year earlier.

The February figure represents the embattled smartphone maker’s weakest monthly revenue figure in seven years.

Meanwhile, Apple could be gearing up to make the company’s situation even worse, with a report in the Wall Street Journal claiming the American tech giant is raiding talent from HTC in a bid to build teams in Shanghai and Taipei.

The teams, which develop components for iPads and iPhones, are being beefed up as Apple aims towards getting more frequent releases of its flagship products.

The company is also interested in supply chain managers in the wake of negative coverage about working conditions at the factories of some of its suppliers.

In August last year, Apple reportedly used LinkedIn in a deliberate bid to reach engineers at HTC, as well as suppliers Inventec and Quanta Computer.