Smartphone sales by volume in China were flat in the second quarter, a sign that growth in the market is finally slowing, reports Caixin.
Despite volume of sales falling flat, value of sales in the world’s largest smartphone market rose 8% during the period, as consumers are upgrading to more expensive devices.
“Higher-priced new products are pushing up market value,” data tracking firm GfK was quoted by Caixin as saying. “GfK forecasts smartphone demand in China to total 461 million units in 2017, an increase of 2% percent year-on-year. The growth in U.S. dollar value terms is expected to be considerably higher, at 11% year-on-year.”
China’s top five phone makers were Huawei, Vivo, Oppo, Apple and Xiaomi, in that order, according to another data tracking firm, IDC, which will release second-quarter global rankings next week.
“We expect the second half of the year to see higher shipments compared with the first half, though nothing dramatic,” IDC analyst Tay Xiaohan said.