Chinese Smartphone Sales Continue to Fall – Chinese Smartphone Sales Keep Dropping

Published on: January 30, 2019 / Update from: January 30, 2019 - Author: Konrad Wolfenstein

The Chinese smartphone market, once an Eldorado for investors and technology companies, has recently become less attractive. The market has been declining in volume for five consecutive quarters (year-on-year) and is expected to lose further ground in the final quarter of 2018, for which figures are not yet available.

The manufacturer of the iPhone, Apple, is feeling the effects of the sluggish Chinese market, but so are domestic companies. Among the main players, only smartphone maker Vivo was able to increase its track record in 2018.

Longer replacement cycles and weak consumer spending are reasons why smartphone makers are unable to sell more handsets to Chinese consumers, according to analytics firm Strategy Analytics. The trade war with the United States didn't help Chinese technology companies either.

Analyst IDC expects the Chinese and global smartphone markets to level off throughout 2019 and pick up again by 2022. They cite the launch of several high-end devices that are expected to make consumers willing to upgrade from existing phones. Foldable and 5G networks should also make Chinese consumers willing to pay for smartphones again.

The Chinese smartphone market, once an El Dorado for investors and tech companies, has lost some of its appeal recently. The market has been decreasing in volume for five consecutive quarters (year-on-year) and is expected to lose more ground in the final quarter of 2018, for which numbers have yet to be released.

Maker of the iPhone, Apple, has been feeling the effects of the sluggish Chinese market, but so have domestic companies. Among the major players, only smartphone maker Vivo has been able to increase on its track record in 2018.

Longer replacement cycles and weak consumer spending are reasons why smartphone makers can't sell more phones to Chinese consumers, according to analytics firm Strategy Analytics. The trade war with the United States didn't help Chinese tech companies either.

Analyst IDC is expecting the Chinese and global smartphone markets to flatten out during 2019 and pick back up by 2022. They cite the launches of several high-end devices that are expected to have consumers willing to upgrade from existing phones. Foldables and 5G networks are also expected to make Chinese consumers willing to spend on smartphones again.

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