The Financial Post reports in its Friday edition that Apple shares tumbled Thursday, on track to wipe out $212-billion (U.S.) of market value in just two days, as China plans to expand a ban on the use of iPhones to government-backed agencies and state companies. A Bloomberg dispatch to the Post says that shares of the consumer technology company fell as much as 5.1 per cent, bringing its two-day slump to 7.1 per cent. Apple is the biggest component in major United States equity indexes, adding to a broader sell-off sparked in part by an economic slump in China. Bank of America analyst Wamsi Mohan notes that the "timing of the potential ban is interesting," given the recent launch of Huawei Technologies' high-end 5G-capable smart phone. If Beijing goes ahead, the unprecedented blockade might also affect several other U.S. technology firms that rely on sales and production in China.