"The Power of iPhone" Global Smartphone Sales Surpass $100 Billion... Apple Holds 42% Share

Global Smartphone OEM Revenue Market Share in Q1
[Source: Counterpoint Research]

[Asia Economy Reporter Seulgina Jo] The global OEM smartphone market's first-quarter sales surpassed the $100 billion mark for the first time ever. Apple's iPhone accounted for 42% of the sales share. Samsung Electronics ranked first in shipment volume but was overtaken by Apple in terms of sales revenue.

According to a report by market research firm Counterpoint Research on the 29th (local time), the global smartphone market in the first quarter recorded the highest quarterly sales ever, driven by increased sales from the top five OEMs. The market size reached $113 billion, a 35% increase compared to the same period last year.

Among manufacturers, Apple's sales share stood out prominently. Led by the iPhone series, Apple accounted for a whopping 42% of total sales. This is an increase from 34.4% in the same period last year, which was severely impacted by COVID-19. Apple expanded its shipment share from 13.6% to 16.8%, but still trailed behind Samsung Electronics.

IT media outlet PhoneArena reported, "Except for the year-end holidays, Apple has never been the world's number one smartphone manufacturer, but this is not bad at all," adding, "Despite accounting for only 16.8% of global shipments, Apple generated a staggering 42% of total sales." This is attributed to the high average selling price (ASP) and the strong performance of the iPhone 12 series, Apple's first 5G smartphone.

Samsung Electronics, the annual leader in smartphone shipments, ranked second in sales. Its first-quarter sales share declined from 20.2% in the same period last year to 17.5% this year. However, its share of total shipments increased from 19.9% to 21.7%. PhoneArena noted, "Despite the early launch of the Galaxy S21, Samsung's sales share is declining," and explained, "This means that the mid-range Galaxy A series had a higher share than the flagship S series."

Global Smartphone OEM Shipment Volume and Market Share in Q1
[Source: Counterpoint Research]

Senior analyst Harmit Singh Walia stated, "These results came at a time when the industry was facing supply chain constraints," and added, "Apple recorded its highest-ever sales share in the first quarter, thanks to the strong performance of the iPhone 12 series." Chinese brands Xiaomi, Oppo, and Vivo, which emphasize cost-effectiveness, also recorded their highest-ever shipment volumes and sales in the first quarter. This filled the gap left by Huawei, which is under U.S. government sanctions, and also influenced the spread of 5G within China.

Xiaomi ranked third in shipment volume in the first quarter with a 13.7% share. However, focusing on affordable mid-range smartphones, it ranked fifth in sales with 7.6%. In terms of profitability, Oppo and Vivo outperformed Xiaomi. Oppo accounted for 10.7% of total shipments and generated 8.2% of global smartphone sales. Both figures increased compared to the same period last year. Counterpoint Research attributed this to aggressive expansion in Europe and Huawei's contraction. Following Oppo, Vivo accounted for 8.0% of sales and 10% of shipments.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.