Apple is reportedly losing Chinese market share despite discounts

Apple’s aggressive discount campaign in China apparently didn’t stop it from losing market share.

The tech giant ended May with 11% of the Chinese smartphone market, even as iPhone sales rose 0.9% year-on-year, Seeking Alpha reported on Monday (July 1), citing findings from investment firm UBS.

“We estimate that iPhone sales in China were largely flat in the year to May 24 in a market that grew 11% year over year,” wrote UBS analyst David Vogt.

“While Apple bulls may note that the data is backward-looking and may not be indicative of Apple’s AI smartphone potential next year, we note that the loss of iPhone share to Huawei and other Chinese OEMs acts as a material governor in iPhone unit growth”.

Vogt also noted that iPhone sales in the US also fell 16% while the overall smartphone market was down 10%, a sign that Apple had lost share in America. The company fell 7% in India, where the market was down 7%, but down 19.5% in Europe, though that’s below the overall 21% growth in that market.

These findings throw some cold water on recent data from the Chinese Academy of Information and Communication Technology showing a rebound in iPhone sales in China. Shipments of foreign-brand phones in the country reached 5.028 million in May, up from 3.603 million a year earlier. And because Apple is the dominant foreign brand in China, the increase is likely due to the profits made by the company.

iPhone sales had fallen earlier in the year due to pressure from other China-based smartphone makers, including the aforementioned Huawei, before jumping 52% and 40% in April and May respectively, thanks in part to discounts offered from Apple to its officials. Tmall site in China.

Also last week, research firm Counterpoint Technology Market Research said Apple’s sales in China benefited from stronger promotions and an extra week of sales prices than in the past, due to a longer-than-usual 618 shopping festival in the country. . In 2023, that festival lasted less than three weeks, while this year it lasted an entire month.

“The brand offered the biggest discounts ever, reaching up to RMB 2,350 (about $326) ​​during the period to entice consumers, especially given the strong competition from Huawei in the premium segment,” Counterpoint said in a press release.