Apple single-handedly drives Singles’ Day smartphone sales growth

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SHANGHAI (Reuters) -Strong demand for Apple’s iPhone during China’s Singles’ Day shopping festival single-handedly drove growth in smartphone sales during the period, research firm Counterpoint said on Thursday.

Apple accounted for 26% of all smartphones sold over the month-long event, with total sales across brands increasing 3% from a year earlier.

Sales of Apple’s iPhone 17 were particularly brisk, Counterpoint said. Excluding Apple, Singles’ Day smartphone sales declined 5% overall, “reflecting a cautious consumer environment drained of momentum”, it said.

Consumer malaise in China, stemming from a prolonged property crisis and concerns about income security, has made it increasingly difficult to get people to open their wallets.

This year’s Singles’ Day sales festival wrapped on November 11 after more than a month of promotions on the country’s largest e-commerce platforms, but failed to spark widespread consumer excitement.

Data provider Syntun said overall sales for Singles’ Day totalled 1.70 trillion yuan ($240 billion) across platforms, up from last year’s 1.44 trillion yuan, which had a shorter festival period.

In the smartphone segment, Huawei saw the biggest decline among major brands with its share falling to 13% of sales, down from 17% last year. Its flagship Mate 80, launched earlier this week, missed the sales period.

Xiaomi phones accounted for the second-largest share of sales with 17%, though its sales declined from a year earlier due to the earlier timing of its Xiaomi 17 series launch.

(Reporting by Casey Hall; Editing by Kevin Buckland)