Apple Sales Fall y/y on China's Singles' Day, Huawei Up 7%

FILE PHOTO: A Chinese flag flutters near a Huawei store in Shanghai, China September 8, 2023. REUTERS/Aly Song/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A Chinese flag flutters near a Huawei store in Shanghai, China September 8, 2023. REUTERS/Aly Song/File Photo
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Apple Sales Fall y/y on China's Singles' Day, Huawei Up 7%

FILE PHOTO: A Chinese flag flutters near a Huawei store in Shanghai, China September 8, 2023. REUTERS/Aly Song/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A Chinese flag flutters near a Huawei store in Shanghai, China September 8, 2023. REUTERS/Aly Song/File Photo

Apple sold fewer smartphones during China's Singles' Day shopping festival this year as it faced pressure from an "abnormally high" number of rival handsets launched around the event, Counterpoint Research said on Wednesday.

The iPhone manufacturer saw its sales decline year-on-year by "double digit percentages" from Oct. 18 to Nov. 10, the research consultancy said. In comparison, its main rival in China, Huawei, recorded 7% sales growth, fueled by price cuts on its Pura 70 and Mate 60 models.

Xiaomi also saw sales decline, with volumes falling 6%, Reuters reported.

"To capitalize on one of the biggest sales festivals of the year, major Chinese OEMs (manufacturers) except Huawei launched their latest flagships ahead of the festival," Counterpoint said, describing this as a key reason for Apple's decline. Only Xiaomi did so last year, it noted.

Huawei declined to comment. Apple and Xiaomi did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Overall, smartphone sales in China during the event, the country's biggest online shopping festival, fell 9% year-on-year as a slowing economy weighed on consumer enthusiasm despite the promotions, Counterpoint said.

Apple's Singles' Day performance underscores the growing competition it faces in the world's largest smartphone market, especially from Huawei which has come back strongly in the premium segment.

The US tech giant has since responded with multiple discount campaigns to boost sales. Apple's iPhone 16 Pro and the iPhone 16 Pro Max were the festival's best selling models, Counterpoint said.

China's e-commerce platforms such as Alibaba and JD.com did not release sales figures for the festival, having dropped the practice in 2022, but Alibaba said Apple and Xiaomi were among brands that surpassed 1 billion yuan in gross merchandising value.



SDAIA Receives Recognition for Innovative Projects at WSIS Summit in Geneva

SDAIA’s nominated projects represented a distinguished set of technological initiatives that demonstrated innovation, relevance, and impact in their respective fields - SPA
SDAIA’s nominated projects represented a distinguished set of technological initiatives that demonstrated innovation, relevance, and impact in their respective fields - SPA
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SDAIA Receives Recognition for Innovative Projects at WSIS Summit in Geneva

SDAIA’s nominated projects represented a distinguished set of technological initiatives that demonstrated innovation, relevance, and impact in their respective fields - SPA
SDAIA’s nominated projects represented a distinguished set of technological initiatives that demonstrated innovation, relevance, and impact in their respective fields - SPA

The Saudi Data & AI Authority (SDAIA) received certificates for its nominated projects, which were recognized among the best entries at the 2025 World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) Prizes held in Geneva, Switzerland, highlighting SDAIA’s innovative contributions to the fields of data and artificial intelligence (AI).

SDAIA’s nominated projects represented a distinguished set of technological initiatives that demonstrated innovation, relevance, and impact in their respective fields.

Out of 973 submissions from various countries, they were chosen after an expert evaluation conducted by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), SPA reported.

The nominated projects included the government cloud-computing platform “Deem,” which provides integrated and flexible cloud services for government entities; the “Nafath” application for biometric identity verification; the “Serti” service within the “Tawakkalna” app that enables users to display their certified academic qualifications; the “Tahseen” project, which uses AI to restore and enhance historical media; and the “Allam” and “Sawtak” projects, both of which represent a significant leap in supporting and processing Arabic using large language models and speech recognition technologies.

These achievements reflect the Kingdom’s commitment, through SDAIA, to reinforcing its global standing as a trusted authority in data and AI, advancing the national digital transformation agenda, and supporting the goals of Saudi Vision 2030. They also contribute to enhancing the Kingdom’s regional and international competitiveness in technology and innovation.