Chinese brand captures 87% of Chinese smartphone market

Domestic handset vendors like Huawei, Vivo, Oppo and Xiaomi have captured around 87% of Chinese smartphone market in Q2, 2017 according to a study by Counterpoint.

The smartphones shipments in China grew a modest 3% annually during Q2 2017, registering second consecutive quarter of annual growth this year.

Commenting on the results, James Yan, Research Director, Counterpoint said, “June seasonally is a strong month for China as it is usually buoyed by portfolio upgrades from major brands such as Oppo, vivo and Xiaomi. The top four Chinese brands now capture close to 69% of the market as these brands have raced ahead of international and other local brands with expansive distribution reach and exciting portfolio.”

Huawei and vivo were the fastest growing brands followed by OPPO and Xiaomi, together cementing the top four spots and extending their lead over Apple and Samsung by a wide margin. Apple’s performance continue to be seasonal, while Samsung is losing out to Oppo-Vivo onslaught in offline. Xiaomi made a surprise comeback after being on decline for a few quarters against Huawei Honor.

Commenting on the vendor performance, Tarun Pathak, Associate Director, Counterpoint said, “Huawei continued to capture the top spot this quarter ahead of rivals OPPO and vivo, shipping higher volumes into the channels. Huawei’s Nova and Enjoy series along with flagship P10 were in strong demand during the quarter.”

“OPPO and vivo were able to also grow significantly over last year with strong performance in mid-tier with A and Y series respectively as well as with F/R and V/X series in high-tier respectively. The key reason behind the comeback of Xiaomi can be attributed to strong demand for its latest flagship Mi 6 and low-tier models such as Redmi Note 4X as well as focus on diversifying distribution channels,” added Pathak.

Sharing insights on the growth prospects, Neil Shah, Research Director, Counterpoint said, “We are nearing the time where the days of easy growth are over for Huawei, OPPO, vivo and Xiaomi in China. The competitive landscape is converging as all the top four Chinese brands have reached a steady and dominant position in a very slow growing market. The race for the top two spots is always up for grabs as one misstep can push a brand easily two spots behind."

"The dip in performance by either of brand could affect their global performance. As a result, we believe heavily China dependent brands such as OPPPO, vivo and Xiaomi will be aggressive in expanding their reach beyond China during the second half of this year. India, South Asia and Africa will be the key focus geographies to drive additional scale and market share to make up any dip in domestic market,” added Shah.

Tags: Chinese brand captures, Chinese smartphone market, Counterpoint, smartphones shipments in China, James Yan Research Director Counterpoint, Tarun Pathak Associate Director Counterpoint