Apple plans to finally start selling iPhones in China

Apple Inc. AAPL +0.60% is preparing to ship iPhones to China Mobile Ltd.,0941.HK +1.30% people familiar with the matter say, an indication that a long-awaited deal between the two companies is in place.

A deal would cap years of negotiations between the two companies. Apple has tried to hammer out a deal with China’s largest wireless carrier that has 700 million subscribers, seven times the size of the U.S.’s largest wireless carrier Verizon Wireless. Greater China is Apple’s third biggest market after the U.S. and Europe in terms of sales.