Sales of smartphone in the China market increased 22.4% sequentially to 93.4 million units in the second quarter of 2019 as local brands were keen to roll out new models after inventories in the channels had been partly cleared out in the previous quarter, according to Digitimes Research. On a yearly basis, second-quarter shipments were still down 1.6% from a year earlier.
The top-five smartphone vendors in China in the second quarter were Huawei, Vivo, Oppo, Xiaomi and Apple, with their combined share reaching as high as 95%. Separately, Huawei, Vivo and Oppo saw their respective shares improve in the second quarter compared to a year earlier, and Xiaomi and Apple experienced setbacks, according to Digitimes Research's latest China smartphone report.
Looking into the second half of 2019, smartphone sales in China are expected to suffer double-digit declines on year in both the third and fourth quarters, as US-China trade disputes have again intensified since August and consumer confidence in China is unlikely to recover significantly amid a weak economy.
Huawei is expected to see its shipments growth slow down on year in the second half, and other local brands will brace for double-digit declines. Foreign brands will see shipments improve sequentially in the second half but will drop over 10% on year.