Apple’s smartphone shipments in China experienced a 6.7% decline in the second quarter of 2024. The drop highlights the growing challenges Apple faces in its third-largest market.
Apple’s shipments for the quarter ending in June totaled 9.7 million units, down from 10.4 million units in the same period last year.
In contrast, Huawei saw a 41% increase in shipments, reaching 10.6 million units, thanks to the launch of its new Pura 70 series in April. As a result, Apple’s market share fell from 16% to 14%, causing its ranking in the Chinese smartphone market to drop from third to sixth place.
Overall, smartphone shipments in China grew by 10% during the quarter. Vivo led the market with a 19% share, followed by Oppo, Honor, and Huawei, each with 16%, 15%, and 15% respectively.
“Domestic manufacturers have achieved unprecedented dominance, filling the top five spots in the Chinese market for the first time.”
Meanwhile, Apple is under pressure to grow in the Chinese market and is focusing on optimizing its channel management. To boost sales, Apple has increased its discounting efforts this year, launching an extensive promotion in May with discounts of up to 2,300 yuan ($318.84) on selected iPhone models, doubling the scale of a February campaign.
Huawei’s resurgence in the high-end smartphone segment began last August with a device featuring a domestically-made chip, overcoming U.S. sanctions that restricted its access to the global chipset supply chain.
Analysts predict Huawei will maintain its strong performance throughout the year. Huawei’s total smartphone shipments in China will surpass 50 million units in 2024, with the Pura 70 series contributing 10 million of those units. This would position Huawei as the leading seller with a 19% market share, up from 12% in 2023.
