According to Bloomberg, in December last year, iPhone shipments in the Chinese market were about 3.18 million units, an increase of 18.7% year-on-year. Bloomberg’s calculations are based on data released by the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology.
It is said that in December 2019, China’s domestic smartphone market had a total shipment of 30,444,000 units, a year-on-year decrease of 14.7%. Among them 1.461 million are 2G smartphones, 23.57 million are 4G smartphones, and 5.414 million are 5G smartphones.
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For the full year of 2019, China’s domestic smartphone market shipped 389 million units. Among them 16.13 million are 2G smartphones, 58,000 are 3G smartphones, 359 million are 4G smartphones, and 13.769 are million 5G smartphones.
In contrast, according to data released by Credit Suisse, in November last year, iPhone shipments in the Chinese market fell by more than 35%. In September and October last year, Apple sold about 10 million iPhones in the Chinese market.
European financial group Oddo analysts said that despite the lack of 5G preparations, iPhone sales in China improved in December. It was “quite positive” for Apple and its suppliers.
Analysts said that the latest data confirms that iPhone 11 sales will be stronger than the previous generation, especially in an important market such as China. In addition, the surge in shipments gives people reason to be optimistic about Apple smartphone sales, as the Chinese New Year is coming.
Nevertheless, Apple still faces strong challenges from local smartphone manufacturers such as Huawei in the Chinese market. Over time, Apple lags behind competitors in supporting 5G. It is unknown whether iPhone shipments can continue to grow.