Coming out of a 50% plunge in March, new data from the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology (CAICT) shows that non-Chinese phone makers saw a small, but welcome rebound in April.
Small gains mean big news
According to the report, which hasn’t yet been made available publicly but has been seen by Reuters, foreign-branded smartphone shipments in China totaled 3.52 million units in April. That’s just a hair up from 3.50 million in the same month last year, but should still count as good news, considering the abysmal March report.
The April uptick follows a rocky fiscal Q2 for Apple, during which revenue in China fell 2% year-over-year. That came on the heels of a Counterpoint Research report that showed that Apple had seen a 7.7% drop in iPhone sales during the first quarter.
That drop, combined with increased pressure from local brands (who have been helped by aggressive government-backed subsidies), forced Apple to become more aggressive with pricing as well. Earlier this month, Reuters reports, major Chinese e-commerce platforms were offering discounts of up to ¥2,530 (about $350) for the latest iPhone 16 models.
Ultimately, those price cuts appear to be doing their job, at least for now. The April numbers aren’t a significant victory by any stretch, but they do suggest that Apple may be finding a floor after months of steep declines in one of its most important markets.
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