Apple Inc’s market share in China shrank by two percentage points in the second quarter of this year, as the tech giant faced intensifying competition from rivals like Huawei Technologies Co (華為), according to data from market research firm Canalys.
The decline underscores the difficulties the US tech giant faces in its third-largest market.
Huawei’s smartphone shipments surged 41 percent year-on-year in the quarter, bolstered by the launch of its new Pura 70 series in April.
Photo: Samsul Said, Bloomberg
The Canalys data, while not providing specific shipment figures for Apple, showed that the company’s market share in China dropped to 14 percent in the quarter, a decrease from 16 percent a year earlier.
As a result of this decline, Apple’s ranking in the Chinese smartphone market fell from third to sixth place.
Overall, China’s smartphone shipments rose by 10 percent in the second quarter, Canalys said. Vivo Communication Technology Co (維沃) was the top vendor with a share of 19 percent, followed by Oppo Mobile Telecommunications Corp (歐珀), Honor Terminal Co (榮耀) and Huawei with 16 percent, 15 percent and 15 percent, respectively.
“Domestic manufacturers have demonstrated market leadership, occupying the top five positions in the mainland Chinese market for the first time in history,” Canalys research analyst Lucas Zhong (鍾曉磊) said.
“On the other hand, Apple faces growth pressure in the Chinese market and is actively focusing on optimizing channel management.”
Huawei made a comeback to the high-end smartphone segment in August last year with the release of a device powered by a domestically-made chip, defying US sanctions that have cut off its access to the global chipset supply chain.
In an effort to boost sales, Apple has ramped up its discounting efforts this year to entice consumers. The US company launched an aggressive campaign in May, doubling the scale of an earlier promotion in February and offering price cuts of up to 2,300 yuan (US$318.84) on select iPhone models.
Analysts expect Huawei’s strong performance to continue throughout the year. Canadian research firm TechInsights projected earlier this year that Huawei’s overall smartphone shipments in China will exceed 50 million units this year, with the Pura 70 series accounting for 10 million of those shipments.
That would make Huawei the No. 1 seller with a 19 percent market share, up from 12 percent last year, TechInsights has said.
PATENTS: MediaTek Inc said it would not comment on ongoing legal cases, but does not expect the legal action by Huawei to affect its business operations Smartphone integrated chips designer MediaTek Inc (聯發科) on Friday said that a lawsuit filed by Chinese smartphone brand Huawei Technologies Co (華為) over alleged patent infringements would have little impact on its operations. In an announcement posted on the Taiwan Stock Exchange, MediaTek said that it would not comment on an ongoing legal case. However, the company said that Huawei’s legal action would have little impact on its operations. MediaTek’s statement came after China-based PRIP Research said on Thursday that Huawei filed a lawsuit with a Chinese district court claiming that MediaTek infringed on its patents. The infringement mentioned in the lawsuit likely involved
Taipei is today suspending work, classes and its US$2.4 trillion stock market as Typhoon Gaemi approaches Taiwan with strong winds and heavy rain. The nation is not conducting securities, currency or fixed income trading, statements from its stock and currency exchanges said. Authorities had yesterday issued a warning that the storm could affect people on land and canceled some ship crossings and domestic flights. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) expects its local chipmaking fabs to maintain normal production, the company said in an e-mailed statement. The main chipmaker for Apple Inc and Nvidia Corp said it has activated routine typhoon alert
GROWTH: TSMC increased its projected revenue growth for this year to more than 25 percent, citing stronger-than-expected demand for AI devices and smartphones The Taiwan Institute of Economic Research (TIER, 台灣經濟研究院) yesterday raised its forecast for Taiwan’s GDP growth this year from 3.29 percent to 3.85 percent, as exports and private investment recovered faster than it predicted three months ago. The Taipei-based think tank also expects that Taiwan would see a 8.19 percent increase in exports this year, better than the 7.55 percent it projected in April, as US technology giants spent more money on artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure and development. “There will be more AI servers going forward, but it remains to be seen if the momentum would extend to personal computers, smartphones and
Catastrophic computer outages caused by a software update from one company have once again exposed the dangers of global technological dependence on a handful of players, experts said on Friday. A flawed update sent out by the little-known security firm CrowdStrike Holdings Inc brought airlines, TV stations and myriad other aspects of daily life to a standstill. The outages affected companies or individuals that use CrowdStrike on the Microsoft Inc’s Windows platform. When they applied the update, the incompatible software crashed computers into a frozen state known as the “blue screen of death.” “Today CrowdStrike has become a household name, but not in