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Xiaomi topples Apple to regain top spot in China

James Pearce
August 3, 2015

Xiaomi and Huawei both sold more smartphones in world’s biggest market than iPhone maker during Q2

Xiaomi has regained its spot as the biggest smartphone-maker in China, knocking Apple from the summit, according to figures from Canalys.

The Chinese manufacturer had a 15.9 per cent share of all smartphone sales in the region, closely followed by Huawei with 15.7 per cent, relegating Apple to third.

Huawei saw its quarter-on-quarter growth in the region grow by 48 per cent, fuelled by its Honor range of handsets

The figures show that between them, the two Chinese firms had almost a third of all sales in the country. Samsung and Vivo rounded out the top five.

Canalys said Apple had been the biggest vendor in the region during the first three months of the year. According to the US manufacturer’s latest figures, sales in Greater China have more than doubled year-on-year to $13 billion. iPhone sales in the region grew by 87 per cent YOY.

“Apple and Samsung have both increased their sales activities in the China market, expanding rapidly in channel coverage through flagship stores and small to medium size phone retailers respectively. Xiaomi is under immense pressure to maintain its top position in the quarters to come,” said Canalys analyst Jingwen Wang in a statement.

Counterpoint Research

Figures from Counterpoint Research seems to support Canalys’ claims about sales in the region. Counterpoint named the same top three, although it put Xiaomi’s share at marginally less (15.8 per cent).

Huawei had a 15.4 per cent share, according to Counterpoint, while Apple’s share was 12.2 per cent. Canalys did not disclose market share for Apple.

Vivo saw a 250 per cent year-on-year growth to earn 8.1 per cent of the market share.

Xiaomi had bounced back after to successive quarterly dips, according to Counterpoint, with its Mi Note phablet and its $150 RedMi 2 the two top selling devices during Q2.

Overall, the Chinese market remained the biggest market in the world, but contracted slightly, as shipments slid two per cent year-on-year, but were up four per cent on the preceding quarter.

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