Beijing (AFP) – In the last quarter of 2021, Apple regained the top spot in Chinese smartphone sales, six years after losing this position, at a time when US sanctions severely hamper Huawei, the country’s leading company, according to a study.
Despite the market decline in China, Apple’s share of phone sales increased to 23 percent between October and December, Counterpoint said in a study.
At the end of 2021, the giant American company became the largest manufacturer of smartphones in the giant Asian country in terms of sales, overthrowing the Chinese company “Vivo”.
A year ago, Apple was in fourth place with a market share of 16%, behind Chinese brands, including Huawei, which was at the top of the list with a share of 23%.
For the first time since 2015, Apple regained the lead in China, according to Counterpoint, which does not specify the number of devices sold.
“Apple’s exceptional performance is linked to the combination of Huawei’s pricing strategy and product scaling up,” which built its success by offering products at initially low prices, said Counterpoint analyst Mingmin Zhang.
Huawei has been at the center of the Sino-US rivalry for years, against the backdrop of a war in trade and technology between the two world’s leading powers.
Huawei found itself in the crosshairs of the administration of former US President Donald Trump, which accused it, without providing evidence, of possible spying for Beijing.
In 2019, Washington placed the Chinese group on its blacklist to prevent it from acquiring essential US technologies for its products.
And the Joe Biden administration has maintained these restrictions.
Israeli bombings in Syria leave more than 40 dead
At least 42 soldiers of the Syrian government forces and members of the Lebanese Shiite group Hezbollah died this Friday,...