(Yicai Global) Sept. 8 -- China's Oppo Mobile Telecommunications has hiked its global smartphones sales target for the second half of this year while much of that growth should come from the domestic market.

The handset maker is looking to sell 100 million units over the six months and has raised its China goal by 30 percent, the Paper reported, citing an internal letter written yesterday by Liu Bo, vice president of the Dongguan-based firm. He didn't reveal the earlier target of the unlisted company.

The figure is in line with the company's sales in the second quarter when China was already quickly recovering from the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic, based on market research data. Oppo sold 23.6 million units, ranking as global No. 5, in the three months ended in June, according to Gartner's recent report. In China, the phonemaker's sales reached 14.5 million units in the second quarter, coming in third, based on Canalys data.

In the second half, Oppo will focus on fifth-generation wireless handsets and those will make up a larger portion of the firm's total, Liu added. The manufacturer will also step up research and development toward a next-generation high-end Find model that should be launched in the first quarter of next year, just a year after the previous one.

The new retail trend is integrating shopping with education and entertainment, according to Liu. Hence, Oppo has rejigged its retail strategy and penned deals for 37 new stores in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen. By the end of this year, that number should rise to 60. One of the latest flashy super flagship stores is in southern China's Guangzhou.

Besides optimizing its physical store experience, Oppo will increase its investment in online sales channels, especially its e-commerce platform Oppo Store, Liu added.

Editor: Emmi Laine