TOPSHOT – Apple’s iPhone 15 series is displayed for sale at The Grove Apple retail store on launch day in Los Angeles, California, on September 22, 2023. (Photo by Patrick T. Fallon / AFP) (Photo by PATRICK T. FALLON/ AFP via Getty images)
Patrick T. Fallon | Afp | Getty Images
apple iPhone shipments fell nearly 10% globally in Q1 2024, weighed down by double-digit growth in shipments from Chinese challengers Xiaomi and transition, report by International Data Corp. shown.
Apple shipped 50.1 million units in the first quarter, down 9.6 percent from 55.4 million shipments in the same period last year, according to the IDC report. Among the top five smartphone brands in the report, Apple recorded the biggest year-over-year decline.
Samsung regained the top spot in the first quarter after losing the crown to Apple last year, with a 20.8% market share, shipping almost the same number of units as last year at 60.1 million. Its market share was 22.5% in the first quarter of 2023.
Apple, which surpassed Samsung As the largest smartphone maker in 2023, it saw its market share drop to 17.3% from 20.7% a year earlier.
“While IDC expects these two companies to maintain their position at the top of the market, Huawei’s resurgence in China, as well as notable gains from Xiaomi, Transsion, OPPO/OnePlus and vivo will likely have both OEMs looking for areas to expand and diversify,” said Ryan Reith, group vice president at IDC Worldwide Mobility and Consumer Device Trackers.
Xiaomi’s shipments rose 33.8% to 40.8 million units in the first quarter, while Transsion jumped 84.9% to 28.5 million units.
Shenzhen-based smartphone manufacturer Transsion, which owns the Tecno, Itel and Infinix brands, has quietly become the world’s fifth largest smartphone maker, according to several references.
In terms of market share, Xiaomi (14.1%), Transsion (9.9%) and Oppo (8.7%) ranked third, fourth and fifth, respectively, based on Q1 shipments , the IDC report revealed.
“Xiaomi is coming back strongly from the big decline of the last two years and Transsion is becoming a consistent presence in the Top 5 with aggressive growth in international markets,” said Nabila Popal, research director in IDC’s Worldwide Tracker group.
However, Chinese smartphone giant Oppo’s shipments fell 8.5% to 25.2 million in the first quarter.
Tech giant Huawei and its spinoff Honor did not make the top five. They were the best-performing smartphone brands for the first six weeks of 2024, according to Counterpoint Research.
Apple is facing pressure in China, particularly from Huawei, whose consumer business is resurging after the launch of the Mate 60 smartphone.
Globally, total smartphone shipments in the first quarter rose 7.8 percent year over year to 289.4 million units, marking the third consecutive quarter of shipment growth, according to IDC.
This is “a strong indicator that the recovery is underway” despite macroeconomic challenges, the research firm said.