The Chinese smartphone market is moving in a positive direction. This progress results from the remarkable sales of the latest Xiaomi model. A week after its launch, Xiaomi’s Mi 14 series surpassed the one-million-unit mark, indicating a bright start for the product.
Notably, the Chinese smartphone market participants consider this achievement a positive development, as the market has long struggled with a steady decline.
This decline stemmed from the COVID-19 pandemic and a sluggish economic recovery, leading to delays in phone upgrades.
Xiaomi Sales Initiate Market Recovery
The CEO of Xiaomi, Lei Jun, took to the microblogging platform Weibo to announce the milestone, stating the substantial increase in the sales of the Mi 14 series. This reflects its shortage in supply and increase in demand.
The flagship model, featuring Qualcomm’s cutting-edge Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 processor and Xiaomi’s proprietary HyperOS software, officially emerged in the Chinese market on October 31.
Analysts, including Will Wong from IDC, see this launch as a promising start for the Chinese smartphone market. They believe it could soon reach a turning point after a long period of decline.
This comes after a notable surge in sales of Huawei’s Mate 60 series phones. An event that marks a recovery from the United States export control placed on the company in 2019.
Meanwhile, IDC predicts a year-on-year (YoY) growth for the Chinese smartphone market in the fourth quarter. If this prediction holds, the market will eventually break a streak of ten consecutive quarters of decline.
Furthermore, U.S. chip designer Qualcomm also reported a heightened demand from smartphone companies, particularly emphasizing the Chinese market.
Xiaomi’s strategic move into the premium smartphone market is evident in the pricing of the Mi 14 series, ranging between 3,999 yuan and 6,499 yuan ($550-$890), as the company aims to compete with industry giants like Apple and Huawei.
Smartphone Historical Market Data
In the second quarter of 2023, smartphone shipments in China experienced a 4% year-on-year decline. This decline occurred despite significant promotional efforts by original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) during the 618 festival.
The dip was attributed to reduced demand due to economic challenges. Surprisingly, Apple emerged with the most substantial year-on-year growth in Q2. This was fueled by the OEM’s strategic decision to offer substantial price reductions for the iPhone 14 series during the same period.
Also, OPPO witnessed a slight increase in market share compared to the previous year, driven by the strong performance of OnePlus. On the other hand, Vivo and Xiaomi experienced year-on-year declines, attributed to a weakened economy that restrained consumer spending.
HONOR also faced a significant drop in market share year-on-year, partially due to Huawei’s growth. Notably, this event posed a challenge for the company in the market at the time.
However, considering the rise in sales for the newly released Xiaomi Mi 14 series, there is a possibility that other markets will take a positive turn over the coming months.
