Apple has been reportedly in discussions with China's BOE Technology Group Co. to supply next-generation displays for future iPhones, a key component that's being provided by a Samsung Display.

Apple's been testing BOE's active-matrix organic light-emitting diode screens for months but hasn't decided if it'll add the Chinese company to its roster of suppliers, Blooomberg's sources said.

BOE is spending close to 100 billion yuan ($14.5 billion) building two AMOLED plants in the southwestern province of Sichuan in anticipation of future business.

Talks are at an early stage and it's unlikely to supply the next iPhone, which is expected to launch this fall.

For the upcoming models, Apple has reportedly ordered the majority of OLEDs needed for the new iPhons from Samsung Display.

The display is one of the most expensive components of a smartphone. The world's four biggest suppliers of smartphone displays -- Samsung Display Co., Sharp Corp., LG Display Co. and Japan Display Inc. -- are said to have insufficient capacity to equip all new iPhones this year, a constraint that may persist into 2018.