Apple will be offering a no-contract iPhone 5s for $1,169 when it debuts its first store in Latin America, marking the most expensive price for its iPhones, Bloomberg reported. 

The company's 16-gigabyte iPhone 5s will be sold for BRL 2,799 or $1,169 when the Brazilian store makes its debut. The price of the contract-free phone is definitely higher compared to the US price of $649 and the $872 price tag in China. In Brazil, the price of the iPhone 5s from authorized resellers has increased 17% since September on the company's website.

Brazil is going to be the 15^th country where Apple will be operating its own outlet. Strategy Analytics Director of Global Wireless Practice Neil Mawston said that Apple is growing its reach in Latin America because of the saturation in the US and the yearning to make a footprint in one of the largest smartphone markes in the world.

In a phone interview, Mawston told Bloomberg, "The hype and shine around the Apple brand is not quite as strong as it was two or three years ago, so I wouldn't expect as strong a buzz. But it still should be quite an exciting launch for Apple, the country and the region as a whole."

Mawston added that with 50 million users last year, Brazil has made it to the top 10 smartphone markets in the world. This comprises 3% of the global user base and two times the number of Mexican smartphone users.

Apple will open its new store in Rio at the VillageMall of Multiplan Empreendimentos Imobiliarios located in the Barra da Tijuca district in Rio de Janeiro, where the Summer Olympics of 2016 will be staged, the report said.

Brazil's National Confederation for Commerce of Goods, Tourism and Services Chief Economist Carlos Thadeu de Freitas said it's still a good time for Apple to open its store. He told Bloomberg in a phone interview, "Even though we are at the end of the cycle of strong consumption, it's still a favorable moment for Apple to open its store. There is demand for quality, and Apple is quality."