Kevin Frayer
Update: The story was updated with information from Counterpoint's press release.
Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) iPhone sales in China declined about 19% in the first quarter of 2024, according to Counterpoint Research.
Apple slipped to the third spot, about on par with Huawei Technologies. China's smartphone sales grew 1.5% year-over-year in the March quarter as domestic brands such as Honor Device and Xiaomi (OTCPK:XIACF) (OTCPK:XIACY) led growth, the report added.
The iPhone's decline marked the phone's worst performance in China since COVID hit around 2020, according to Bloomberg News.
The U.S. tech giant's share declined to 15.7%, taking the third spot, in the first quarter, compared to 19.7% in the first quarter of 2023 when it led the list.
Vivo led with 17.4% share, though it was down compared to the first quarter of 2023 when it had 17.7% share. Honor came in second with 16.1% share in the first quarter of 2024, compared to 14.7% in the same period a year ago. Huawei came in fourth with a 15.5% share.
The iPhone's sales were impacted in the first quarter, despite the Chinese Lunar New Year celebrations in this period, which is usually a time of high consumption.
Huawei stood out as the best performer among all original equipment manufacturers, or OEMs, during the first quarter, growing 69.7% year-over-year, indicating its resurgence in the premium segment which was once dominated by Apple. Huawei's growth was largely due to the successful launch of the 5G-capable Mate 60 series, which was introduced last year, the report noted.
Earlier this month, Huawei launched its highly anticipated Pura 70 series of smartphones, as the company looks to sustain momentum after its flagship phone Mate 60 helped erode Apple's (AAPL) dominance in China's high-end smartphone segment.
The iPhone sales in China had fallen 24% year-over-year in the first six weeks of 2024 amid rising competition from the local rivals, according to a report by Counterpoint Research in March.
Samsung (OTCPK:SSNLF) reclaimed its crown as the top smartphone maker from Apple (AAPL), which saw its iPhone shipments drop 9.6% in the first quarter of 2024, as per a preliminary data from International Data Corporation.