(Yicai Global) Aug. 6 -- Honor increased its slice of the Chinese smartphone market to 8.4 percent in June from 5.1 percent in January as the budget phone brand bounces back after being divested from Chinese telecoms giant Huawei Technologies last November, according to the latest research.

Honor sold 2.3 million mobile phones in June, Counterpoint Research said in a report released today. Sales have grown strongly in the last few months, with shipments jumping 39 percent month on month in May and 27 percent in June. In the second quarter Honor joined the ranks of the country’s top five handset makers for the first time.

The release of the Honor 50 series, which boasts a 5G Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G chip, on June 25 has helped boost sales, the report said. The firm’s deliveries between June 21 and July 4 were 36 percent higher than the previous fortnight, giving it around 12 percent market share.

Honor split from blacklisted Huawei last year to free it from the US export sanctions that were crushing the Chinese telecoms giant’s supply chain. Once the ‘divorce’ was complete, Shenzhen-based Honor was quick to reconnect with Huawei’s former US suppliers, including semiconductor firm Qualcomm.

Traditionally a budget brand, Honor is also eyeing the high-end market and is preparing to launch its Magic 3 series, powered by Qualcomm’s latest chipset Snapdragon 888+, later this month.

There will be greater competition in the CNY2,000 (USD300) and above market brackets in the second half, Counterpoint said.

Editor: Kim Taylor