Apple Jumps to Second in China

Apple moved from sixth to second place in the Chinese smartphone market during the third quarter of 2026. The company captured 19.5% of shipments in the region, a rise of 4.8 percentage points from the same period last year. This gain was driven by the launch of the iPhone 18 Pro series.

The overall market contracted sharply. Counterpoint Research reported that total shipments in China dropped 10% year over year. This figure marks the weakest level for the sector in 14 years. Rising memory prices contributed to the industry-wide decline.

Huawei remained the market leader with a 21.3% share. The Chinese firm increased its market position by 5.3 percentage points during the quarter. Huawei and Apple were the only two of the top six brands to grow their share. All other major manufacturers lost ground.

Vivo saw its share fall 2.8 points to 15.2%. OPPO declined 1.3 points to reach 15.1%. Xiaomi dropped 1.6 points to 13.5%, and HONOR fell 2.2 points to 12.7%. Smaller manufacturers combined lost 2 points, ending the period with a 2.8% share.

Counterpoint attributed Apple’s growth to strong initial sales of the new hardware. The firm noted that iPhone 18 Pro series sales in the first three weeks were up 23.5% year over year. The report suggested that a delayed release of the base iPhone 18 may have shifted buyers toward the Pro models.

Other industry data showed mixed results. IDC reported a 15.4% drop in China shipments for the quarter. That firm estimated Apple’s share at 17.8%, despite a 4.3% decline in iPhone units. IDC also recorded a record 22% drop in global smartphone shipments for the period.