Apple‘s sales in China are reaching new heights. The company reported its highest ever revenue in China in the fourth quarter, driven by the popularity of its iPhone 12 series. Apple said its China revenue came in at USD21.31 billion in the three months ended December 26, up 57% from a year earlier. Apple CEO Tim Cook attributed the strong performance to “more than an iPhone story”, adding that its other products also contributed, although the iPhone 12 was crucial in fueling phone upgrades. “China had a record number of upgraders during the quarter, the most we’ve ever seen in a quarter. People probably delayed purchasing in the previous quarter as rumors started appearing about a new iPhone,” Cook said. At the same time, a well-established 5G network in China and local consumers’ mounting enthusiasm about 5G handsets also contributed to iPhone 12 sales, he added.

Amber Liu, Research Analyst at Canalys, said: “Apple had a great year in China where full year shipments finally returned to the 2018 level, driven by both iPhone 11 and iPhone 12 models. Apple recorded its highest quarterly shipments in China since the fourth quarter of 2015 when the iPhone 6S was launched. Aggressive online promotions across e-commerce players, coupled with widely available trade-in plans and interest-free installments with major banks, drove Apple’s stellar performance.” In the fourth quarter, Apple was the second largest smartphone vendor in China. It reported its best performance in the nation in recent years, shipping more than 15.3 million units in the October-December period, with an 18% market share, up from 15% a year earlier, said Canalys. 

Though Huawei maintained its top spot in China, its local smartphone shipments declined by 44% year-on-year in the quarter, with its local market share shrinking to 22%. Will Wong, Research Manager for client devices at International Data Corp Asia-Pacific, said in a research note that Huawei faced supply shortages in three series due to the continued impact from U.S. sanctions – with its Mate 40 series in the fourth quarter shipping more than 60% fewer units than the Mate 30 series compared to the fourth quarter of 2019. IDC said that from October to December, all of the top five vendors recorded favorable growth – with the exception of Huawei. Oppo, Vivo and Xiaomi, which were ranked third to fifth in the Chinese smartphone market, are fighting to win over Huawei’s market share. Oppo’s growth in the fourth quarter was mainly supported by its A32 and Reno5 series. The A32 model recorded nearly 4 million shipments, while the Reno5 series was able to penetrate the offline channel’s USD350-USD450 segment with its more reasonable pricing and eye catching design. This helped Oppo reach top spot in December, IDC said, as reported by the China Daily.