Huawei fails to revive supply, shows China smartphone market downfall

Huawei (including Honor), managed to ship 18.8 million units, and its market share declined to 22% from 41% in Q3 2020. Oppo rose rapidly into second place, shipping 17.2 million smartphones, growing 23% year-on-year. Vivo also showed strong year-on-year growth at 20%, and came in third at 15.7 million units. As reported Apple showed its best performance in China in recent years, shipping more than 15.3 million units in Q4, with 18% market share, up from 15% in Q4 2019. Xiaomi completed the top five, shipping 12.2 million units, growing 52% year-on-year.

“It is possibly Huawei’s toughest time as it is restrained to even serve its home market,” commented Canalys VP of Mobility Nicole Peng. “Huawei’s sell-in shipments shrunk by nearly half sequentially, despite huge demand for Huawei devices, as the vendors are unable to fulfil this demand in the foreseeable future. Other vendors are eyeing this opportunity. Oppo, Vivo and Xiaomi are fighting to win over Huawei’s offline channel partners across the country, including small rural ones, backed by huge investments in store expansion and marketing support. These commitments brought immediate results, and market share improved within mere months. 2021 will be clearly a year of aggressive expansion for Oppo, Vivo and Xiaomi.”

“Apple had a great year in China, where full year shipments finally returned to the 2018 level, driven by both iPhone 11 and iPhone 12 models. Apple recorded its highest quarterly shipments in China since Q4 2015 when iPhone 6S was launched,” said Canalys Research Analyst Amber Liu. “Apple’s launch of iPhone 12 series in China coincides with Huawei’s struggle, its only rival in the high-end segment, whose flagship Mate series shipped fewer than 4 million units in Q4. However, Apple has not relaxed its market promotions for iPhone 12. Aggressive online promotions across ecommerce players, coupled with widely available trade-in plans and interest-free installments with major banks, drove Apple to its stellar performance,” added Liu.

“Honor is also a player we shouldn’t ignore in China in 2021, as the vendor has inherited most of Huawei's strengths and aims to win over Huawei’s loyal customers,” added Peng. “As 5G becomes a common feature for new smartphones, leading vendors like Oppo, Vivo and Xiaomi will double down investments in their flagship and premium portfolios focusing on product breadth and premium components. As Huawei recedes, local consumers and channels are exposed to more choices, while newer or smaller brands have more chances to stand out. The market will be ready to embrace a long period of shake up in the coming year.”