2018 has been a very fruitful year for companies like Huawei. The manufacturer sold 202.9 million mobile phones worldwide, increasing its sales by 34.8% compared to 2017. According to data from the Gartner consultancy, its market share went from 9.8% in 2017 to 13.4 % in 2018. For now, it remains in third place in the sector, behind Samsung and Apple, although this could change very soon.
The company is very close to snatching its position from Apple, which only has a six million device lead over Huawei. In figures, those of Cupertino sold 209 million iPhones last year, which translates into a fall of 2.8%. The biggest decline occurred in China, where its market share fell to 8.8% in the fourth quarter of last year from 14.6%, compared to the same period last year. What is happening to Apple?
According to Gartner experts, the lack of innovation coupled with price increases was decisive in the purchase decisions of customers. In fact, the demand for entry-level and mid-priced mobiles has remained at a good pace in all markets. However, demand for high-end mobile phones continued to decline in the fourth quarter of 2018. For its part, Samsung, which has a wide catalog of entry-level, mid-range and high-end handsets, recorded worse figures worldwide during the last year. The South Korean sold 26 million fewer smartphones than in 2017, reducing its market share from 21% to 19%, compared to 13.4% for Huawei, and 8% for Xiaomi, which ranks fourth. Overall, the company suffered an 8.2% decline in its mobile sales in 2018.
But, despite the fact that Gartner does not give figures for the Spanish market, Samsung leads the ranking of sales revenue in our country with a 31.6% share, followed by Apple (27%) and Huawei (23.7%). If we take into account the sale of cell phones by units, Huawei ended the year with a 28% market share compared to 27% for Samsung or almost 11% for Apple. It is clear that 2018 has been the year of Huawei, who seems ready to unseat Apple shortly. With Samsung it will be more complicated, although the two will compete face to face in a very short time.
