Mobile device sales They continue to fall throughout the world. It is a trend that extends to China, a country in which Honor managed to catapult to the top 1 in November of last year. Despite the downward trend, Huawei had a record year, plus a plan to sell twice as much in the new year.
The one that is suffering considerably is Apple. Its sales in China are not recovering despite the fact that the iPhone is the best-selling mobile phone. To weather the storm, they decided to offer some unprecedented discounts. They have not had the desired effect, because as we read in the new Counterpoint report, the Californian firm is still in the doldrums.
Apple does not take off in China
Traditionally, Apple has had good sales in the Asian country, although in recent years local competitors are making things quite complicated for it. We already knew about little interest that the family has raised iPhone 15 in China: models like the controversial Huawei Mate 60 Pro have eaten the toast.
Now, in the new Counterpoint report Of the first six weeks of 2024, we do not see things improving for the Californian company. iPhone sales have fallen 24% in this period, compared to the same period in 2023.
In this same range, the Chinese firm Huawei has come out well with an increase in sales of 64%. Nothing to do with Apple, and all thanks to quite powerful launches like the aforementioned mobile phone that has “forbidden” components.
In addition to the resurgence of Huawei sales, the firm with the bitten apple has been affected and “pressured” by the aggressive prices from brands like Oppo, Vivo and Xiaomi, according to Mengmeng Zhang of Counterpoint Research.
Counterpoint Image
At the level of total sales, as we say, they continue in free fall. They have reduced by 7% in the mentioned period. And experts do not predict a better future. However, for Huawei, which has experienced certain moments of concern after the US sanctions, the situation is improving with its new 5G mobile phones.
On the other hand, well-known brands such as Xiaomi and Oppo have also succumbed to the market trend, recording drops in sales. How does the manufacturers’ podium compare to sales for the same period in 2023? The first place goes to Vivo, timidly dropping from 19% to 18%.
Then comes Huawei, which has grown from 9% to 17% (in the first two weeks of 2024 was the one that placed the most mobiles). Honor and Apple complete the top 3 with the same percentage, although while the former grows, the latter falls sharply. Then, there is Xiaomi with 14% (the same as last year) and the rest of the brands that share the remaining piece of the pie.
This slowdown in demand in China could affect the expected income from Apple, which as we read on BBC, disappointed investors when the results were published. The Cupertino company stated that sales were $20.82 billion in the final quarter of 2023, significantly down from $23.9 billion a year earlier.
More information | Counterpoint
Cover image | Wikimedia Commons
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