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Huawei outsells its three local rivals combined and surges at Apple’s expense in world’s largest smartphone market

  • In the third quarter, Huawei’s phone shipments grew 66 per cent year on year to 41.5 million units, according to Canalys

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A Huawei logo is pictured at their store at Vina del Mar, Chile July 18, 2019. Photo: Reuters
Li Taoin Shenzhen

China’s leading smartphone maker Huawei Technologies has further extended its dominance in the domestic market, eroding the market share of all other competitors amid an ongoing US technology ban which has seen Chinese consumers rally behind the brand.

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In the third quarter, Huawei’s phone shipments grew 66 per cent year on year to 41.5 million units, according to an emailed research note issued by Canalys on Wednesday. Huawei has now amassed a record market share of 42.4 per cent in China compared to 24.9 per cent in the same period last year.

All other major smartphone brands reported more than 20 per cent declines each during the three-month period, with Xiaomi slumping the most at 33 per cent. Vivo, Oppo and Apple, the second, third and fifth largest vendors in China, reported 23 per cent, 20 per cent and 28 per cent declines in shipments respectively during the quarter, according to Canalys.

In mid-May Huawei and 68 affiliates were placed on a US trade blacklist that prevents them from using US technologies and software without approval.

The trade ban caused Huawei to delay sales of its newly launched Mate 30 smartphone series in Europe, the company’s biggest market outside China, because the handsets have no access to Google apps and services, but it has yet to have any impact on domestic sales. To the contrary, the action by Washington over national security concerns has given a huge boost to Huawei’s domestic sales as mainland Chinese consumers show allegiance to the brand, largely at the expense of Apple.

Huawei’s shipments in the latest quarter are equal to the combined shipments of the three other major Chinese brands Vivo, Oppo and Xiaomi, and eight times that of Apple’s 5.1 million iPhone quarterly sales in China.

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