(Yicai) Jan. 15 -- Chinese smartphone makers are chipping away at the global market shares of Apple and Samsung, the top two brands, according to the latest data from market research firm International Data Corporation. 

The US and South Korean handset giants retained their leading positions last year but their shipment volumes and market shares both contracted, IDC said in a report released yesterday.

Top supplier Apple shipped 232.1 million handsets in 2024, down 0.9 percent on the year before, and its market share shrank to 18.7 percent from 20.1 percent. Samsung shipped 223.4 million units, a 1.4 percent decline, while its market share dropped to 18 percent from 19.5 percent.

Chinese producers ranked third to fifth. Xiaomi was third with shipments of 168.5 million, a 15.4 percent gain, taking a market share of 13.6 percent, up from 12.5 percent. Transsion Holdings, which focuses on the African market, saw shipments grow 12.7 percent to 106.9 million, capturing 8.6 percent of the market.

Oppo Mobile Telecommunications logged 1.4 percent growth, with shipments of 104.8 million and a market share of 8.5 percent.

China’s smartphone makers set a new record for total shipments in the fourth quarter of last year, accounting for 56 percent of the global total, said Francisco Jeronimo, vice president of devices at IDC for Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.

While China and Asia remain the core markets for these manufacturers, the strong performance of their mid-range to low-end products has allowed them to rapidly expand their influence in Europe and Africa, Jeronimo added.

In the fourth quarter of last year, global smartphone shipments grew 2.4 percent to 331.7 million from a year ago, marking six consecutive quarters of growth. Annual shipments rose 6.4 percent to 1.24 billion, making a strong recovery after a two-year decline, IDC noted.

The global market will grow more slowly this year as consumers stretch out the product replacement cycle and given that much pent-up demand from the past few years was released last year, the IDC predicted.

Editor: Tom Litting