Apple Sees Market Share Decline in 2024 as Chinese Smartphone Brands Surge Globally: IDC – Benzinga

International Data Corp cites preliminary data showing that global smartphone shipments increased 2.4% to 331.7 million units in the fourth quarter of 2024.

This marks the sixth consecutive quarter of shipment growth, and after two years of decline, the year closed with 6.4% growth and 1.24 billion shipments.

Nabila Popal of IDC noted that vendors successfully adjusted their strategies to drive growth by focusing on promotions, launching devices in multiple price segments, offering interest-free financing plans, and aggressively trading in devices, fueling premiumization and boosting low-end devices, especially in China and emerging markets.

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Popal expressed optimism about continued growth in 2025 while flagging the threat of tariffs from the Donald Trump administration, which has triggered uncertainty in the industry.

IDC expects the market to continue growing at a slower pace in 2025 as refresh cycles continue to grow and pent-up demand is fulfilled.

While Apple Inc AAPL and Samsung Electronics SSNLF maintained the top two positions in the fourth quarter and for the year, both companies witnessed year-on-year declines and lost market share to the Chinese vendors this year who drove the overall market by focusing on affordable devices, rapid expansion, and development in China.

Outside of Apple and Samsung, Xiaomi XIACF XIACY came in third for the quarter and the year, with the highest year-on-year growth rate among the top five players. Transsion placed fourth but tied with Vivo for the quarter and Oppo for the year.

Francisco Jeronimo called out Xiaomi, Oppo, Vivo, Honor, Huawei, Lenovo, Realme, Transsion, TCL, and ZTE for their remarkable fourth quarter.

They shipped the highest combined volume ever in a quarter, representing 56% of the global smartphone shipments.

While their core markets remain China and Asia, Jeronimo noted that these brands are expanding their footprint in Europe and Africa thanks to their low-end and mid-range devices. Huawei stands apart, with most of its shipments in the high-end and premium segments.

Also this week, Counterpoint pointed out how iPhones, devoid of their Apple Intelligence features, failed to gain traction in China, making way for the domestic players in 2024.

As per Counterpoint, global smartphone sales grew 4% in 2024, led by Europe, China, and Latin America.

Counterpoint expects AI-capable smartphones to become a norm for mid-range devices. By 2028, Counterpoint expects 90% of smartphones priced above $250 to be Generative AI-capable.

Apple stock surged 28% in last 12 months. Investors can gain exposure to the stock through iShares Global Tech ETF IXN and Fidelity MSCI Information Technology Index ETF FTEC.

Price Action: AAPL stock traded higher by 0.12% at $234.67 at the last check on Tuesday.

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Photo courtesy: Apple