IT giant Lenovo’s founder and Chairman Liu Chuanzhi said in an interview that Apple was missing out on an opportunity to expand further in China.

Liu Chuanzhi told the Financial Times that Apple didn’t understand what mainland consumers want.

Speaking on the topic, Mr. Chuanzhi said, "We are lucky that Steve Jobs has such a bad temper and doesn't care about China. If Apple were to spend the same effort on the Chinese consumer as we do, we would be in trouble.”

China is one of the fastest growing markets in the world, and Lenovo enjoys around 30 per cent of the market.

Demand for Apple’s sleek products is great in China, but Apple has limited official channels to sell its products in the country. For instance, the iPhone is legally available only via China Unicom. Moreover, heavy price tag has been discouraging its sales.

Apple didn’t respond to Liu Chuanzhi's comments directly, however, it said that it had opened a new retail outlet in Shanghai on Saturday and had plans to operate as many as 25 stores in China by the end of 2011.