Apple suffered a setback in the first quarter of 2024 due to a sharp fall in shipments amid intense competition from Android in the rapidly advancing smartphone market.
Smartphone shipment increased 7.8% globally to 289.4 million devices in the first quarter, with Samsung overtaking Apple to take the lead with a 20.8% market share. This turn of events for Apple comes after its excellent performance in the previous quarter, during which it momentarily overtook Samsung as the world’s top smartphone manufacturer. Apple has a 17.3% market share, losing ground to Chinese rivals like Huawei despite a 10% shipment decline.
With a 14.1% market share, Xiaomi—a well-known participant in the Chinese smartphone industry—came in third place. With over 60 million devices sold during the quarter, Samsung’s smart introduction of the Galaxy S24 series boosted its performance and signaled a bright future for its newest flagship range.
According to Counterpoint figures, the Galaxy S24 series had an 8% increase in global sales over its predecessor, underscoring Samsung’s ongoing significance in the industry. On the other hand, Apple saw a decrease in iPhone shipments; in Q1 2024, 50.1 million handsets were shipped, compared to 55.4 million in the same time the previous year.
Apple faces difficulties that go beyond shipping figures, as seen in its Chinese market, where smartphone shipments fell 2.1% in the last quarter of 2023. The complicated geopolitical dynamics affecting IT business entities are reflected in the restrictions placed on the usage of Apple products by Chinese government organizations and companies.
Ahead of time, the June edition of Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) is essential because there will likely be changes to the software ecosystem that powers its products. Investors are eager to learn more about Apple’s developments regarding artificial intelligence (AI), a field on which the corporation has remained primarily silent despite growing industry attention.