Crisis in China
Chinese smartphone vendors are increasing their global market share at an alarming rate.
According to sources in the financial investment industry on Sept. 24, four Chinese companies – Lenovo, Huawei, Xiaomi Tech, and ZTE – made up 25 percent of the global smartphone market in August, a 12 percent year-on-year gain, which is the highest-ever result.
In particular, the upward trend of Lenovo's market share was noticeable. The Chinese Android phone manufacturer has maintained the third spot by steadily increasing its share with 7.5 percent in June, 8.0 percent in July, and 9.2 percent in August.
On the other hand, the position of Samsung Electronics and Apple, the two prominent smartphone makers, weakened owing to Chinese firms' good performances. Last month, Samsung and Apple comprised only 33.7 percent of the market with Samsung at 22.3 percent and Apple at 11.4 percent. The combined market share of the two companies was 39.9 percent in June, hovering below 40 percent for the first time in 21 months. Since then, the number has further decreased, with 35.1 percent in July and 33.7 percent in August.
Stock market analysts believe that Samsung has been losing its competitiveness more seriously than Apple. Between July and August, Apple's share of the global smartphone market dipped from 11.6 percent to 11.4 percent, merely a 0.2 percent decline. However, Samsung's share fell by 1.2 percent, from 23.5 percent to 22.3 percent.
By region, Samsung's share of the U.S. smartphone market shrank 10 percent month-on-month to reach 27 percent in August, while the figure for the Chinese market was 10 percent in August, down 4 percent from the previous month. In particular, the Korean Android phone maker had maintained the top position in the Chinese market until June, but Samsung was ousted by Lenovo, Huawei, and Xiaomi Tech to become the #4 smartphone vendor in China in August.