Sales of iPhones in China decline while Huawei experiences a surge, according to reports.
According to research firm Counterpoint, Apple’s iPhone sales in China decreased by 24% in the first six weeks of 2024 when compared to the same period the previous year.
It happens at a time when domestic competitors are putting the US tech giant under intense pressure in the nation.
According to the report, China’s Huawei witnessed a 64% increase in sales within its domestic market during the same period.
Aside from a resurgence of Huawei sales at the more expensive end of the Chinese phone market, Apple was also “squeezed in the middle on aggressive pricing from the likes of Oppo, Vivo and Xiaomi,” Counterpoint Research’s Mengmeng Zhang wrote.
According to the report, total smartphone sales decreased by 7% during the same period in China, one of Apple’s largest markets.
Due to US sanctions, Huawei suffered for years until seeing a spike in sales in August with the launch of its Mate 60 series of 5G smartphones.
The Chinese company was cut off from essential chips and technology needed for 5G mobile internet, which was a huge surprise.
Apple began to offer discounts on its official Chinese websites last month, and last week it subsidized some iPhone models through its flagship stores on Tmall, Alibaba’s marketplace.
A slowdown in demand in China could affect Apple’s revenue which already disappointed investors when the firm released its earnings last month.
The firm said sales in China were $20.82bn (£16.4bn) in the last three months of 2023, down from $23.9bn in the previous year.
Apple shares fell by 2.8% in New York trade on Tuesday.
Source; BBC
