Entering text into the input field will update the search result below

Apple: iPhone China Offline Sales Tumble 11% In August, Weakness Continues

Sep. 28, 2016 1:19 PM ETApple Inc. (AAPL) Stock97 Comments
Ivan Tang profile picture
Ivan Tang
451 Followers

Summary

  • Apple's China offline sales in August dropped 10.8% from a year ago. Market share dropped by 1.1 percentage points to 7.2%, remaining as the No. 4 brand.
  • Overall, the China offline market jumped 3.3% to nearly 40 million units, Chinese brands accounted for 86.7%, and top 4 Chinese brands won a total of 48.2%.
  • Top Chinese brands excel in product innovation, target user-focused marketing efforts and sales network buildup.
  • The furor around iPhone 7’s launch lasted only one day. Sina Technology expected the iPhone 7 to lead a small rebound of iPhone sales but was unable to reverse the sliding trend.

A report released on September 13 by Sino Market Research showed that China's smartphones sold last month through offline channels fetched a new record of nearly 40 million units, of which 4G phones accounted for 94%.

Contrary to a general trend of low-priced products losing market share while high-end ones gaining, Apple (NASDAQ:NASDAQ:AAPL) and Samsung (OTCPK:SSNLF) smartphones dropped in both sales numbers and market share. Sina Technology predicted iPhone's weak performance to continue in September as the iPhone 7 furor was short-lived.

iPhone Market Share Down To 7.2%; Samsung No. 5, Down To 5.2%

A total of 2.861 million iPhones were sold in August, a drop of 348,000 units or 10.8% from a year ago. Its share of China's offline market dropped by 1.1 percentage points to 7.2%, remaining at the No. 4 spot.

Samsung remained one spot lower. It sold 2.064 million units, a drop of 103,000 units or 1.43%. Its market share slid 0.4 percentage points to 5.2%.

All Chinese Brands' Total Market Share Nearly 90%

China's offline sales of smartphones in August jumped 3.3% to 39.51 million units. Chinese producers together accounted for 86.7% of the offline market. Four top Chinese producers OPPO, Vivo, Huawei (including its second-line brand Honor) and Gionee won a total market share of 48.2%.

Vivo was the best performer. It sold 6.214 million smartphones, a jump of 0.81 million units or 15%. Its market share also jumped 1.6 percentage points to 15.7%, catching up fast to market leader OPPO's 18%.

Performance of Top 10 Brands in Chinese Offline Smartphone Market, 8/2016

Brand Name

Market Share

Change

Sale (,000 units)

Change (,000 units)

OPPP

18.0%

+0.8%

7,122

+545

Vivo

15.7%

+1.6%

6,214

+810

Huawei

9.7%

-0.2%

3,833

+52

Apple

7.2%

-1.1%

2,861

-348

Samsung

5.2%

-0.4%

2,064

-103

This article was written by

Ivan Tang profile picture
451 Followers
I am an experienced journalist focusing on multi-disciplinary analysis of China's economy and business. I graduated from the Chinese University of Hong Kong and got my MBA from l'Ecole Superieure de Commerce de Paris.

Analyst’s Disclosure: I/we have no positions in any stocks mentioned, and no plans to initiate any positions within the next 72 hours. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.

Seeking Alpha's Disclosure: Past performance is no guarantee of future results. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. Any views or opinions expressed above may not reflect those of Seeking Alpha as a whole. Seeking Alpha is not a licensed securities dealer, broker or US investment adviser or investment bank. Our analysts are third party authors that include both professional investors and individual investors who may not be licensed or certified by any institute or regulatory body.

Recommended For You

About AAPL Stock

SymbolLast Price% Chg
Market Cap
PE
Yield (TTM)
Rev Growth (YoY)
Prev. Close
Compare to Peers

More on AAPL

Related Stocks

SymbolLast Price% Chg
AAPL
--