Xiaomi is taking advantage of Apple’s freefall to further strengthen its position in the Chinese smartphone market.
Apple has been struggling since the beginning of the trade war between the US and China. This is because a large portion of its products are made in China, but with the increase in import tariffs, it is losing billions just to manufacture and ship its phones to other countries, especially to the US.
Despite the significant increase in tariffs imposed by Donald Trump, the Chinese smartphone market remains strong, becoming less and less dependent on international brands. According to a study on the first half of 2025, the smartphone sector in China grew by 3.3% compared to the same period in 2024.
It may not seem like much, but this percentage is double the global growth indices at the beginning of this year. This growth was driven by government incentives, where the Chinese government increased subsidies, allowing brands to sell more and increase their stocks.
Xiaomi, one of China’s leading smartphone manufacturers, remains in third place in the global smartphone producer rankings, with an impressive growth of 39.9% compared to the same period last year.
For the first time in a decade, the brand surpassed its main competitor, Huawei, reaching 18.9% of the domestic smartphone market. Huawei finished the period with 18%, indicating that the competition is still fierce.
Apple also faces other difficulties in positioning itself in the Chinese market. First, because it cannot benefit from regional subsidies, and second, because the “premium” price of its phones is not an attractive factor for the Chinese, who may prefer other alternatives that offer a better “cost-benefit” ratio.
Photo and video: Unsplash. This content was created with the help of AI and reviewed by the editorial team.
