November 21, 2024 – According to recent reports from Reuters and Counterpoint Research, Apple’s iPhone sales have significantly decreased during this year’s “Singles’ Day” shopping festival in China, primarily due to the influx of new products from its competitors.
Between October 18th and November 10th, iPhone sales dropped by a double-digit percentage compared to the same period last year. Meanwhile, Huawei, Apple’s primary rival in China, achieved a 7% sales increase thanks to price promotions on its Pura 70 and Mate 60 series. However, Xiaomi also experienced a sales decline, with a 6% reduction compared to the previous year.
Counterpoint analysts pointed out that most Chinese smartphone manufacturers, with the exception of Huawei, released new flagship models ahead of the shopping festival, a strategy that put considerable competitive pressure on Apple. Last year, only Xiaomi adopted a similar preemptive release tactic.
Despite substantial promotional efforts, the total sales of smartphones during this year’s “Singles’ Day” decreased by 9% year-on-year, according to Counterpoint data. Apple’s performance during this shopping festival underscores the increasingly competitive landscape it faces in the Chinese market, particularly the challenge posed by the rapidly resurrecting Huawei in the high-end segment.
In response to market pressures, Apple subsequently launched several discount campaigns to boost sales. Reports indicate that the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max emerged as the top-selling models during the festival.
Although e-commerce giants Alibaba and JD.com have refrained from disclosing “Singles’ Day” sales figures since 2022, Alibaba revealed that Apple and Xiaomi were among the brands that achieved sales exceeding 1 billion yuan during the event.
