by Fang Shiqi

The sluggish demand in China’s domestic smartphone market persisted during the 2024 Double 11 shopping festival, despite heavy promotions.  

Double 11, akin to Black Friday in the US, is the world’s largest online shopping event, centered around November 11—nicknamed Singles’ Day—and now includes weeks-long pre-sales to boost consumer interest and sales.

According to market research firm Counterpoint, smartphone sales dropped 9% year-on-year during week 44-45 (October 28 to November 10, 2024).

While most brands saw declining sales, Huawei outperformed with a 7% year-on-year increase. This growth was fueled by significant price cuts on the Pura 70, Mate 60, and newly released Nova 13, all featuring 5G Kirin chips.

Vivo also posted a 5% sales increase, driven by strong performance from its budget-friendly Y series and the newly launched X200 and iQOO models.

In contrast, Honor and Apple experienced double-digit declines. Honor’s sales dropped 15% year-on-year, despite the success of its X60 series. Apple faced stiff competition from the widespread pre-launch of flagship models by Chinese manufacturers, yet its iPhone 16 Pro and 16 Pro Max remained the best-selling models during Double 11.  

Taobao reported that Apple’s sales on Tmall exceeded 1 billion yuan within five minutes of the promotion's launch on October 21, while Huawei, Xiaomi, and Vivo each surpassed 100 million yuan in similar timeframes.

Xiaomi’s total sales fell 6% year-on-year, but the newly launched Xiaomi 15 series performed well, boosting the brand's position in the mid-to-high-end market.

This year's Double 11 campaign started earlier on October 14, extending the pre-sale period and complicating year-over-year comparisons. Adjusting for the longer sales window, TechInsights concluded that Double 11 smartphone sales showed an annual decline.

TechInsights reported Apple, Xiaomi, and Vivo as the top three brands for online sales by volume, while Apple, Xiaomi, and Huawei led by value. Apple continued to dominate the high-end market (above 6,000 yuan), while Huawei recorded the highest average selling price (ASP) among Chinese brands. Vivo surpassed Honor to claim third place, and Xiaomi continued to close the gap with Apple, supported by growth in the entry-level and mid-range markets.