Overview: 

• ​Sell-in exceeded sell-through after two months as demand declines; Chinese OEMs may undertake inventory correction
  • In April, sell-in exceeded sell-through for the first time in two months and inventory has increased. However, this is more to do with declining demand than increasing supply.
  • COVID-19 has hit many emerging markets. India is hit by a severe wave of pandemic followed by lock downs, thus crippling the retail segment. The market contracted sharply in April.
  • Demand in China continues to be sluggish. Upgrades have been slow as “5G connectivity” alone isn’t enough to make LTE phone owners trade in. Then there is also Huawei’s gap. OVX has been aggressive, but former Huawei flagship smartphone users are still sceptical about switching to OVX’s latest flagship devices.
  • The US also declined as Apple and LG slowed. Other regions like MEA also declined due to seasonality.
  • Component shortages persist but we expect Chinese OEMs to cut their aggressive production plans during Q2.
• Xiaomi continues to set record market share; Apple sees highest ever April month market share
  • Xiaomi reached its highest ever market share in April, despite a significant (25% sequential) decline in its core market India. This was driven by its growth in other regions like  Europe, LATAM, MEA and AP Others* 
  • Xiaomi surpassed Samsung to enter the top 3 OEMs (behind OPPO and Vivo) in AP Others* driven by growth in regions like Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines and other SEA Countries. It also cornered over one fourth of the market in Eastern Europe (highest ever) and crossed the one million sales mark in LATAM for the first time.
  • Apple sales declined 13% month on month, and it slipped in the rankings in Europe (surpassed by Xiaomi). However, its 15% market share was the highest ever for the Month of April. This was driven by the US, where Apple’s share grew to over 53% (April record). The iPhone 12 Pro Max remain the best seller in the US.
• US$300-$599 share increases; Xiaomi gains in ultra-premium segment.
  • The US$300-$599 share continued to increase in April. The iPhone 11 and the iPhone SE 2020 were the top-selling models in the segment. Vivo S9, OPPO Reno 5K and Redmi K40 performance in China also helped the increase in market share.
  • Samsung and Xiaomi gained share in the US$300-US$599 price band at the expense of Huawei and Vivo. Samsung’s gain was driven by the A52 and A72, while Redmi K40 and Mi 11 drove volumes for Xiaomi.
  • Xiaomi gained 3% share in the ultra-premium segment driven by the Mi 11 Ultra, which entered the list of top 10 best-selling devices in the US$800+ price band. 

Table of Contents: