Omdia recently released a statistical report on the global mobile phone market in the first quarter of this year. In the quarter, global mobile phone shipments fell by 12.7% year-on-year and 11.1% month-on-month. In terms of brands, among the TOP10, only Huawei’s shipments had a huge increase year-on-year. The report reveals that the company has a shipment growth rate of 14.3%, a shipment share of 2%, and a shipment volume of 6.5 million units. The agency points out that although Huawei’s shipments have shrunk for two consecutive quarters, in any case, compared with a year ago, Huawei is now in a relatively better position.
Almost all other brands faced double – digit year – on – year declines. Only Apple was the same as in the first quarter of last year. In terms of losses, Realme’s year – on – year and quarter – on – quarter declines were the highest in the quarter. For its shipments, Samsung, Apple, Xiaomi, OPPO (including OnePlus), and vivo rank in the top five. In the 6th to 10th spots, we have Transsion, Honor, Motorola, Realme, and Huawei. It is quite interesting that Huawei is in the top 10 list despite all the issues that it had faced.
Huawei mobile phone sales since 2019
Huawei, a leading Chinese tech company, has been one of the fastest – growing mobile phone brands in recent years. However, the company’s sales have been quite bad since 2019 due to various factors. The COVID-19 played some part but the main reason is the tension between the US and China. Of course, we all know that Huawei is facing a ban which is not making things easy for the company. However, Huawei is now in a better position comparatively.
Huawei sales in 2019
In 2019, Huawei surpassed Apple as the second – largest mobile phone maker in the world. At that time, the Chinese brand was only behind Samsung. The company’s strong performance was driven by its competitive pricing, innovative tech, and strong presence in the Chinese market.
Huawei’s global mobile phone shipments increased by 16.5% in 2019, reaching a total of 240 million units. This strong sale was driven by strong demand in China and other emerging markets. In these markets, Huawei’s cheap and feature – rich mobile phones were popular among users.
However, Huawei’s sales growth was hampered by the US govt’s decision to add the company to its Entity List. This restricts US brands from doing business with Huawei. This led to supply chain issues and forced Huawei to find alternative suppliers for its key parts.
Huawei sales in 2020
The impact of the US trade ban on Huawei’s sales became more apparent in 2020. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic causing a decline in global mobile phone sales overall, Huawei’s global mobile phone shipments declined by 22% in 2020. The company was only able to ship 190 million units.
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The decline in Huawei’s sales was mainly due to its inability to access key parts from US suppliers. This includes Google’s Android operating system. This forced Huawei to develop its own system and app ecosystem. The HarmonyOS is Huawei’s own system but the company has not been able to roll out this system outside China. In fact, at the moment, the company has no plans to launch this system outside China.
However, Huawei’s sales in China remained strong in 2020. The company was able to maintain its position as the top mobile phone brand in the country. This was driven by strong demand for Huawei’s mid – range and budget mobile phones. These mobile phones were popular among Chinese users seeking for cheap yet high – quality devices.
Huawei sales in 2021
Huawei’s sales in 2021 have continued to be impacted by the US trade ban, as well as the COVID-19 pandemic. The company’s global mobile phone shipments declined by 44% in Q1 2021. It was only able to ship a total of 17 million units. The reason for the decline is the same as in 2020. The company is unable to launch mobile phones with 5G network tech. This has made it difficult for Huawei to compete with other leading mobile phone brands.
However, Huawei maintains its strong position in the Chinese market. The company’s market share in China hit 43% in Q1 2021. This has been driven by strong demand for Huawei’s mid – range and cheap mobile phones. The company only now has its own ecosystem of apps and services and it’s making some funds.
Huawei sales in 2022
In 2022, Huawei’s net profit slid by 69% from the previous year to 35.6 billion yuan, or just over $5 billion. This was a huge drop in profit, and it was largely due to the US ban that was imposed on the company. In the first half of 2022, Huawei’s revenue dipped by just under 6% due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the US – China trade rivalry that hit sales. In 2022, the company was able to ship 133 million units. This is an increase from the previous year.
Conclusion
Huawei’s sales performance since 2019 has been significantly impacted by various factors, including US trade restrictions, supply chain disruptions, and the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite these challenges, the company has continued to maintain its strong position in the Chinese market, where it remains the top smartphone brand.
Looking forward, Huawei will need to find ways to overcome the challenges posed by the US trade restrictions and supply chain disruptions, while also investing in research and development to remain competitive in the global smartphone market. While the company’s sales performance has been impacted in recent years, its innovative technology and strong brand recognition suggest that it has the potential to bounce back and regain its position as one of the leading smartphone brands in the world.
