DIGITIMES observed and analyzed that the first quarter of 2025 was a slow season for overseas markets. The subsidy policy for purchasing a new smartphone announced by China's National Development and Reform Commission in January only temporarily boosted local demand as sales actually declined after the early consumption.
Overall, global smartphone shipments by Chinese brands decreased by 10.1% quarter over quarter but increased by 5.3% year over year.
In the first quarter of 2025, Chinese smartphone brands shipped a total of 171.4 million units. Observing shipment concentration, the top three brands – Xiaomi, Oppo, and Vivo – achieved a combined quarterly growth rate higher than that of the top-4 to -7, Transsion, Honor, Lenovo, and Huawei, combined. As a result, the market share of the top three brands rose to 58.9%, up from 55.7% in the previous quarter.
Chart 1: Key factors affecting the 1H25 China smartphone industry: Supply
Chart 2: Key factors affecting the 1H25 China smartphone industry: Demand
Chart 3: China smartphone industry shipments, 1Q24-2Q25 (m units)
Chart 8: China smartphone industry's export shipments, 1Q24-2Q25 (m units)
Chart 9: Export shipments by Chinese vendor, 1Q24-2Q25 (m units)
Chart 11: China smartphone industry shipments, 2021-2025 (m units)
