iPhone Sales Plummet in China, Apple’s Market Outlook Dims

The decline in iPhone sales in China is worsening, and it is likely that Apple will experience a significant decrease in sales this year, according to analysts from financial services company Jefferies, led by Edison Lee.

The iPhone 15 lineup started off slowly in China last year, and this decline expanded to a 30 percent drop in the first week of 2024 due to increasing competitive pressure from local competitors to Apple.

The rest of the mobile phone market in the country grew in December 2023, with Huawei achieving rapid growth due to its new range of devices, Mate 60.

The first appearance of the Huawei Mate 60 Pro sparked national excitement, allowing the Chinese company to regain some customers it had previously lost to Apple, weeks before the release of the iPhone 15 lineup in September 2023.

The Mate 60 Pro phone operates with a new processor manufactured in China. Geffrez estimates that Huawei has shipped about 35 million smartphones in 2023, with some supply constraints preventing a significant increase in this number.

Apple witnessed a significant decrease in sales volume in December 2023, and Jeffrey’s expects a similar decline in 2024.

In the past week, discounts on Apple smartphones increased through various online shopping portals, resulting in a decrease in the average selling price without stimulating sales growth.

In the first week of 2024, the prices of iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max were reduced by 16% on the e-commerce platform Pinduoduo.

The decrease of 30 percent represents a significant acceleration compared to the annual decrease of 3 percent that the American company experienced throughout the entire year of 2023.

The decline in Apple can largely be attributed to competitive pressures from Chinese competitors, especially Huawei.

Apple gained a share in China after the US sanctions isolated Huawei from leading chip manufacturing companies worldwide, such as the Taiwanese semiconductor manufacturing company TSMC, in 2020.

Huawei’s comeback to the mobile phone market has led to the revival of its market share. Currently, the company is working on developing its operating system to compete with Apple’s iOS and Alphabet’s Android operating system.