Counterpoint: iPhone sales in China will decline by double digits on Singles' Day in 2024, and the overall smartphone market will drop by 9%

According to Reuters, market research firm Counterpoint Research released a report on Wednesday saying that Apple's iPhone sales in China suffered a decline during this year's Singles' Day shopping festival, as several competitors launched new products in the run-up to the shopping festival, putting pressure on Apple.

Counterpoint said that iPhone sales in China fell by "double-digit percentages" year-on-year during the shopping festival from October 18 to November 10 this year. In contrast, Huawei, Apple's main competitor in China, achieved a 7% sales growth by lowering the prices of its Pura 70 and Mate 60 series. Xiaomi's mobile phone sales also fell by 6% during the same period. Despite various promotional activities, overall smartphone sales in China during this year's Singles' Day fell by 9% year-on-year.

Counterpoint pointed out that the main reason for the decline in Apple's mobile phone sales was that many companies released new mobile phones before Double Eleven. "Double Eleven is one of the largest annual shopping festivals in China. In order to seize this business opportunity, major Chinese mobile phone manufacturers except Huawei have launched their latest flagship models before the shopping festival." Counterpoint said. In contrast, only Xiaomi released a new mobile phone before Double Eleven last year. However, Apple's iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max are among the best-selling mobile phones on Double Eleven.

Apple's sales during the Singles' Day shopping festival highlight the growing competition the company faces in China, the world's largest smartphone market, especially from Huawei, which has made a strong comeback in the high-end market. In response, Apple has launched several discounts to boost phone sales.

Although e-commerce platforms such as Alibaba and JD.com no longer announce their Singles’ Day sales, Alibaba said that Apple and Xiaomi were among the brands whose total transaction volume exceeded 1 billion yuan.

Phoenix Technology