With the demand for the iPhone 5 being overwhelming, Apple revealed in a Monday announcement that it surpassed the `five million units sold' mark within just three days of the launch of the new handset.

The announcement by Apple implies that the notably strong sales of the next-generation iPhone marked a new sales record for the company, which, incidentally, has already sold out the initial supply of the handset, even though many pre-orders are scheduled to be shipped next month.

The pre-orders for iPhone 5 had also touched a new record high, with approximately two million people having pre-ordered the handset; thereby indicating a two-fold increase over the pre-order figures of the previous iPhone - the iPhone 4S - which had sold 4 million units in its launch-weekend in 2011.

With there being speculations galore that supplier issues could likely slow down the iPhone 5 production, Apple CEO Tim Cook said that the new smartphone has been witnessing "incredible" demand; and the company is trying its best to ensure that the handset can be made available to all interested buyers "as quickly as possible."

Further adding that Apple is "working hard to build enough iPhone 5s for everyone," Cook said: "While we have sold out of our initial supply, stores continue to receive iPhone 5 shipments regularly and customers can continue to order online and receive an estimated delivery date."