[NewsPoster]

China Mobile chairman Xi Guohua has downplayed rumors that his company has already finalized a deal with Apple to sell the iPhone. Speaking to journalists during a conference in Guanzhou, the executive claimed that the Chinese carrier has no announcement to make and is still in talks with Apple, according to a Reuters report.

The comments contradict several recent rumors, fueled by an iPhone pre-order listing that China Mobile briefly slipped on its own website. The company a few days later listed Apple's smartphones on a reservation page for its LTE rollout, while a blogger took pictures of what appeared to be iPhone advertisements in one of the carrier's retail stores.

As the largest carrier in the world, with a subscriber base of approximately 760 million users, China Mobile is the last major Chinese carrier to embrace the iPhone. A recent survey suggested an official deal with China Mobile could result in at least 12 million iPhone sales, while analysts expect double that in the first year of availability.

[Wingsy]

So that's why AAPL is down this morning. For some reason I guess investors think that just because it didn't happen on the RUMORED date, that it will never happen. Sounds like my kids' thinking.