Chinese PC maker Lenovo Group Ltd (聯想) has seen rapid growth in China’s smartphone market and aims at raising its share in the high-end market by cooperating with Taiwanese chip designer MediaTek Inc (聯發科), a Taipei-based research firm said recently.
DRAMeXchange Technology Inc, a research arm of advisory firm TrendForce (集邦科技), said in a report on Thursday that Lenovo led all Chinese smartphone makers in terms of shipments in the third quarter of this year.
Altogether, Chinese smartphone makers shipped about 60 million units in the July-to-September period, an increase of 8 percent from the second quarter.
Lenovo, which entered the smartphone sector only in the second quarter of this year, led all local vendors with 9 million units shipped, followed by Huawei Technologies Co’s (華為) 8.5 million units and ZTE Corp’s (中興) 7.5 million units, the report said.
In comparison to other PC makers that have turned to the smartphone market, Lenovo has a stronger pricing strategy and established sales channels, the report said.
EXPANSION
By meeting demand from various consumer groups, Lenovo is strengthening its market share and brand acceptance in the run-up to the company’s attempt to expand through strategies such as adding higher-priced models to its lineup and offering its products internationally, the report added.
As part of an attempt to strengthen its presence in the high-end market and expand to the global market, next year Lenovo may introduce new quad-core and dual-core chips, developed in cooperation with MediaTek, the report said.
The computer maker appears to be determined not to miss the boat on smartphones as the market is growing fast and has a lot of potential.
Lenovo and other Chinese companies are becoming a key part of the smartphone industry. Morgan Stanley forecast in July that China’s smartphone shipments will likely hit the range of between 150 million to 170 million units this year, thanks to rapid upgrades of feature phones.
Meanwhile, Taiwanese companies are also trying to stay ahead in this competitive industry by offering special features to their phones.
Last month, Taiwanese computer maker Acer Inc (宏碁) launched its first smartphone supporting its own personal cloud service in Taiwan as part of efforts to boost its smartphone sales next year. Carrying a price tag of NT$14,900 (US$510) in Taiwan, the cloud service-enabled S500 will go on sale in other Asian countries later this year, the company said.
HYBRID
Asustek Computer Inc (華碩) also launched its second-generation hybrid smartphone last month. The 4.7 inch Padfone 2 can be combined with a 10.1 inch tablet to provide the integrated functions of a mobile phone and a tablet computer.
Asustek said the Padfone lineup is seen as a “restart point” for its smartphone business and the company is dedicated to making its products more user-friendly.
TARIFFS: The global ‘panic atmosphere remains strong,’ and foreign investors have continued to sell their holdings since the start of the year, the Ministry of Finance said The government yesterday authorized the activation of its NT$500 billion (US$15.15 billion) National Stabilization Fund (NSF) to prop up the local stock market after two days of sharp falls in reaction to US President Donald Trump’s new import tariffs. The Ministry of Finance said in a statement after the market close that the steering committee of the fund had been given the go-ahead to intervene in the market to bolster Taiwanese shares in a time of crisis. The fund has been authorized to use its assets “to carry out market stabilization tasks as appropriate to maintain the stability of Taiwan’s
STEEP DECLINE: Yesterday’s drop was the third-steepest in its history, the steepest being Monday’s drop in the wake of the tariff announcement on Wednesday last week Taiwanese stocks continued their heavy sell-off yesterday, as concerns over US tariffs and unwinding of leveraged bets weighed on the market. The benchmark TAIEX plunged 1,068.19 points, or 5.79 percent, to 17,391.76, notching the biggest drop among Asian peers as it hit a 15-month low. The decline came even after the government on late Tuesday authorized the NT$500 billion (US$15.2 billion) National Stabilization Fund (國安基金) to step in to buoy the market amid investors’ worries over tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump. Yesterday’s decline was the third-steepest in its history, trailing only the declines of 2,065.87 points on Monday and
TARIFF CONCERNS: The chipmaker cited global uncertainty from US tariffs and a weakening economic outlook, but said its Singapore expansion remains on track Vanguard International Semiconductor Corp (世界先進), a foundry service provider specializing in producing power management and display driver chips, yesterday withdrew its full-year revenue projection of moderate growth for this year, as escalating US tariff tensions raised uncertainty and concern about a potential economic recession. The Hsinchu-based chipmaker in February said revenues this year would grow mildly from last year based on improving supply chain inventory levels and market demand. At the time, it also anticipated gradual quarter revenue growth. However, the US’ sweeping tariff policy has upended the industry’s supply chains and weakened economic prospects for the world economy, it said. “Now
Six years ago, LVMH’s billionaire CEO Bernard Arnault and US President Donald Trump cut the blue ribbon on a factory in rural Texas that would make designer handbags for Louis Vuitton, one of the world’s best-known luxury brands. However, since the high-profile opening, the factory has faced a host of problems limiting production, 11 former Louis Vuitton employees said. The site has consistently ranked among the worst-performing for Louis Vuitton globally, “significantly” underperforming other facilities, said three former Louis Vuitton workers and a senior industry source, who cited internal rankings shared with staff. The plant’s problems — which have not
RSS