China Mobile, the country's largest handset operator, said it is in 'preliminary contact' with US-based Apple Inc. about introducing the iPhone to the Chinese market.

'Of course, we hope to bring the iPhone to China,' Huang Haibo, a China Mobile executive, told Agence France-Presse.

'But for the time being we're only in preliminary contact with Apple, and we have not made any concrete progress yet,' he said.

Apple's iPhone -- an Internet-enabled mobile telephone, portable digital media player and digital camera in one -- is now being released in Europe. Asia will follow in 2008.

Apple said 1.4 mln iPhones were snapped up in the first three months after its launch. The firm hopes to sell 10 mln units by the end of 2008.