China was the first major global smartphone market to recover from the beginnings of the COVID-19 pandemic. Strict lockdown measures were able to help the country recover from the virus relatively quickly during the first wave as sales returned well before other areas.
In the third quarter, however, things took off again. New Figures from Canalys indicate an 8% decline between quarters – and a 15% year-over-year decline. The company calculates much of the long-time market leader Huawei’s ongoing problems with the US government. The problems had a kind of cascading effect that affected the second largest companies, Vivo and Oppo.
Credit: channels
“Huawei was forced to curtail its smartphone shipments following the August 17th US sanctions that created a void in channels in the third quarter for which its colleagues weren’t equipped. Huawei faces the biggest challenge since its acquisition in 2016, ”said analyst Mo Jia in a press release. “Unless the US government’s position changes, Huawei will seek to change its business strategy to focus on building the company [Harmony] Operating system and software ecosystem as the Chinese government seeks to promote indigenous alternatives to global platforms. “
Huawei fell 18% year over year in mainland China. Vivo and Oppo saw similar decreases at 13 and 18%, respectively. Xiaomi was able to catch up in third place, winning 19% more than last year. Apple remained relatively stable despite the delayed introduction of the iPhone 12. Huawei’s ongoing struggles could create a vacuum for competition.
Analyst Nicole Peng notes that the introduction of the 5G mobile phone has put the US company in a strong position. With most smartphones in China now 5G-enabled, Apple is filling a critical void, and backlog demand for its new 5G-enabled family will be strong. “