At one point in the Huawei vs the US debacle, it became clear that the Chinese telecoms company should hold a significant market share in China — a country where users aren’t used to Google. Following an ever-more challenging few years for Huawei, it’s now the fourth-most sold smartphone brand in China, behind Vivo and Oppo. Apple’s iPhone comes in fifth, according to market research firm Canalys.

China importing almost 1 billion smartphones

Of the 92.4 million smartphones shipped in China during the first quarter of 2021, Vivo claims 23% share, Oppo’s close behind with a 22% share, while Huawei comes in slow and steady with a solid 16%. Sneaking up on the three frontrunners is Xiaomi at fourth (at 15%) and Apple at fifth (at 13%).

According to the stats, Huawei’s China-based competitors saw decent growth quarter-over-quarter, including Vivo, Oppo and Xiaomi. Apple’s net sales doubled year-over-year in the country, and CEO Tim Cook cites the iPhone 12’s as its reason for the growth. “We’ve been especially pleased by the customer response in China to the iPhone 12 family,” Tim Cook said in an earnings call.

The devastating part of this report details the fact that Huawei’s market share fell from a solid 44% down to 16%. A major reason for this decline could be its decision to sell its budget brand Honor in 2020.

All things considered, Huawei’s slow decline in the smartphone sector has opened more possibilities for additional brands to show consumers their fancy features at lower prices. Historically, Huawei devices was aimed at the mid-range to budget market in South Africa. A very active, dedicated market of humans that prefer monetary value over flagship features.

Chinese smartphone brands like Oppo and Vivo have officially launched in South Africa in the past year to try and fill that gap left by Huawei.