Huawei is still celebrating overtaking Samsung to become the world’s number one smartphone maker for the second quarter this year, but that might be short lived. The global sales numbers were driven by the phased coronavirus recovery of Huawei’s and Samsung’s respective key markets—China versus the U.S. and elsewhere. But when it comes to sales numbers, the latest analysis gives Huawei cause for serious concern.
Market researcher Canalys has now released its European sales analysis for that same quarter, finding that not only has Huawei shrunk again—down 17%, but, much more worryingly, domestic rival Xiaomi has grown faster, up 65%, knocking Huawei down to fourth place in a region that has been the heartland for its international expansion. The two Chinese rivals sold similar unit numbers in Europe—a serious win for Xiaomi.
Europe is now a battlefield for Huawei. It had been struggling to successfully launch its new flagship devices to a consumer base that has shown a rigid reluctance to say goodbye to the familiar Google software and services Huawei has now lost. Added to that, the more recent U.S. restrictions on Huawei’s supply chain have also impacted its 5G sales in Europe, which had seemed fairly resilient to U.S. pressure.
As I’ve reported before, Xiaomi is a serious threat to Huawei’s established overseas markets, with the much smaller manufacturer having decided to replicate Huawei’s recipe—quality devices for less, without any of the same restrictions that have hit Huawei. This Chinese land grab has proven incredibly successful for Huawei, and now looks like it could do the same for Xiaomi.
Stay tuned for more tech updates!
Market researcher Canalys has now released its European sales analysis for that same quarter, finding that not only has Huawei shrunk again—down 17%, but, much more worryingly, domestic rival Xiaomi has grown faster, up 65%, knocking Huawei down to fourth place in a region that has been the heartland for its international expansion. The two Chinese rivals sold similar unit numbers in Europe—a serious win for Xiaomi.
Europe is now a battlefield for Huawei. It had been struggling to successfully launch its new flagship devices to a consumer base that has shown a rigid reluctance to say goodbye to the familiar Google software and services Huawei has now lost. Added to that, the more recent U.S. restrictions on Huawei’s supply chain have also impacted its 5G sales in Europe, which had seemed fairly resilient to U.S. pressure.
As I’ve reported before, Xiaomi is a serious threat to Huawei’s established overseas markets, with the much smaller manufacturer having decided to replicate Huawei’s recipe—quality devices for less, without any of the same restrictions that have hit Huawei. This Chinese land grab has proven incredibly successful for Huawei, and now looks like it could do the same for Xiaomi.
Stay tuned for more tech updates!
