Key Points
- Apple’s iPhone shipments in China grew by a slight 0.6% in the third quarter.
- Apple was the only one of the top three brands to see any growth.
- The base model iPhone 17 was a key driver of Apple’s success.
- All of Apple’s major rivals in China saw their shipments decline.
Apple managed to eke out a small gain in the struggling Chinese smartphone market, with its shipments growing by a slight 0.6% in the third quarter. The modest increase was a bright spot in an otherwise gloomy market, which saw overall shipments fall by 0.6% from the same period last year.
According to new data from research firm IDC, Apple was the only one of China’s top three smartphone brands to see any growth at all. The company shipped 10.8 million iPhones, giving it the second-highest market share at 15.8%.
An IDC analyst said that Apple’s “value-for-money” base model iPhone 17 was a key factor in its success, as it attracted budget-conscious customers in a tough economic environment.
In contrast, Apple’s biggest rivals all saw their shipments decline. The market leader, Vivo, saw its shipments fall by nearly 8%. Huawei’s shipments dipped by 1%, and Xiaomi’s dropped by 1.7%.
The Chinese smartphone market has been in a slump for a while now, though the 0.6% decline in the third quarter is an improvement from the more severe 4% drop seen in the second quarter. There is some hope that things will start to pick up in the fourth quarter, thanks to some new flagship phone launches from various companies.
