Apple's iPhone shipments in the Chinese market for the first quarter totaled 9.8 million units, a 9% decrease from the same period last year, research firm IDC reported on the 17th. Consequently, Apple's market share in China fell from 17.4% to 13.7%, marking seven consecutive quarters of decline. Apple currently ranks 5th in market share in China. In contrast, Xiaomi led the market with first-quarter shipments of 13.3 million units, a 40% increase. Overall smartphone shipments in China increased by 3.3%.
IDC analyzed that Apple was unable to take advantage of the 15% cashback benefit for smartphone purchases under 6,000 yuan from the Chinese government. This subsidy policy was impacted by Apple's premium pricing structure. Meanwhile, global iPhone shipments in the first quarter reached 57.9 million units, a 10% increase from the same period last year, attributed to stockpiling in response to tariffs on Chinese products.
Apple's shipment growth rate in the global market was 10%, significantly outpacing Xiaomi (2.5%) and Samsung Electronics (0.6%). As a result, Apple increased its global market share from 17.5% to 19.0% in the first quarter.