Investing.com – Shipments of foreign-branded smartphones, which include Apple Inc's (NASDAQ:) flagship iPhone, fell 47.4% in November from a year earlier, according to data from a government-linked research firm.
Figures from the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology indicated the fourth consecutive monthly decline, with foreign mobile phone shipments to China reaching 3.04 million units during the month. In the period of the previous year, this measure amounted to 5.769 million.
Apple in particular is facing an ongoing slowdown in the Chinese economy, which has raised concerns about deflationary pressures and raised uncertainty about the state of consumer spending.
Meanwhile, fierce competition from local players like Huawei has affected California-based Apple's presence in the country. According to data from research firm IDC cited by Reuters, Apple's iPhone sales fell 0.3% in the third quarter compared to last year, but Huawei's sales rose 42%. In the second quarter, Apple temporarily lost its position as one of the top five mobile phone sellers in China.
In response to pressure, the group recently moved to offer new discounts on the latest high-end iPhone models in a bid to boost demand in China, the world's largest smartphone market.
During a four-day promotion from January 4 to 7, Apple will unveil discounts of up to 500 yuan on the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max models. The prices of the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus offers will also be reduced by 400 yuan.
Apple will also reduce the prices of older iPhone models, along with other products such as MacBook laptops and iPad tablets, by 200 to 300 yuan. Only customers using specific payment methods, including Alipay and WeChat Pay, will be able to access the discounts.
Apple shares fell slightly in pre-market trading in the US on Friday. The stock, which forms part of the so-called “Magnificent Seven” group of big-name technology players who have led the charge in stock markets throughout 2024, is up more than 32% over the past year.
(Reuters contributed reporting.)
