Sales of Apple’s iPhone 16 have started strong in China, offering a positive boost for the company in one of its most important markets. Launched in September, the iPhone 16 is showing promising momentum, according to market researcher Counterpoint Research, following the iPhone 15’s struggle against stiff competition.
In July, Canalys reported that Apple, with the iPhone 15, fell out of the top five in the Chinese smartphone market, trailing behind local brands, even as the market grew 10% year-on-year, with over 70 million units shipped.
However, new data from Counterpoint, cited by Reuters, shows that iPhone 16 sales in China surged 20% during the first three weeks after its 20 September launch, compared to the 2023 lineup.
Counterpoint noted particularly strong demand for the iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max models, with their combined sales up 44% compared to last year’s models. Despite this success, overall iPhone sales in China dropped 2% year-on-year, attributed to weaker sales of older models and fierce competition from Huawei’s Mate and Pura series, which also launched on 20 September.
In August, research firm CINNO reported that Huawei overtook Apple in smartphone shipments in mainland China for the first time in nearly four years, just before the iPhone 16 release.
China’s Importance
China remains a critical market for Apple. In its third-quarter results, Apple revealed that iPhone sales fell by just 0.9% to $39.3 billion, better than the 2.2% drop analysts had predicted. However, sales in China, Apple’s third-largest market, declined by 6.5%.
Apple has faced increasing pressure from local brands like Vivo, Oppo, and Huawei, leading to discounted iPhones in China to stay competitive. This week, Apple opened its largest R&D lab outside the U.S. in Shenzhen, reinforcing its commitment to the world’s largest smartphone market.
