Apple saw a 23% year-over-year increase in iPhone sales in China during the first nine weeks of 2026, significantly outperforming a broader market decline driven by weak demand and rising component costs, according to Counterpoint Research.


China smartphone sales apparently fell by 4% year-over-year in the first nine weeks of 2026. Within this environment, Apple emerged as the fastest-growing major vendor, with iPhone sales rising 23% compared to the same period in 2025. Counterpoint attributed Apple's impressive performance partly to a combination of e-commerce discounts and the inclusion of the standard iPhone 17 in government subsidy programs aimed at stimulating consumer electronics purchases.

Counterpoint noted that the rising cost of memory components has been passed on to vendors, forcing several Android brands to adjust pricing strategies. Chinese smartphone makers OPPO and vivo have announced notable price increases for some existing models, with those changes set to take effect this month.

In contrast, Apple has not announced any comparable price increases and is unlikely to follow competitors in raising prices, instead absorbing some of the margin pressure from higher component costs to maintain pricing stability. The firm added that Apple's control over its supply chain leaves it better positioned than rivals to withstand rising memory costs.

Rising memory prices are expected to persist throughout 2026. The research firm expects China's smartphone market to remain under pressure in the coming months, with potential improvement in June driven by the country's mid-year "618" shopping festival. Counterpoint's findings are based on its China Weekly Smartphone Sell-Out Tracker, which monitors retail sales across the market.
This article, "Apple Bucks China's Smartphone Slump With 23% Sales Jump" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple led global smartphone sales with the iPhone 16 in the third quarter of 2025 while simultaneously accelerating demand for the iPhone 17 lineup and expanding its promotional footprint in the United States, according to new analyses from Counterpoint Research.


Counterpoint Research's Global Monthly Handset Model Sales Tracker shows that the ‌iPhone 16‌ was the best-selling smartphone worldwide during the third quarter of 2025. Well into its second year of life, the device's sustained performance is attributed to continued demand among users upgrading from older iPhone generations, expanded carrier promotions in developed markets, and the broad appeal of the standard ‌iPhone‌ configuration in regions where ultra-premium models represent a smaller share of total volume.

Alongside the ‌iPhone 16‌'s continued leadership, Counterpoint says the iPhone 17 Pro Max entered the quarterly global top-10 list and became the best-selling smartphone in September 2025, despite "limited availability towards the end of the quarter." According to the firm, demand for the ‌iPhone 17 Pro‌ and ‌iPhone 17 Pro‌ Max was strengthened by a large cohort of users who purchased iPhones during the COVID-19 period and returned for major upgrades this year. New features such as a 48-megapixel telephoto camera with 8x optical zoom and a vapor-chamber cooling system represent one of Apple's most substantial year-over-year camera and thermal architecture revisions and contributed materially to monthly sales growth.

The same dataset indicates that, while Apple maintained its position at the top of the global rankings with the ‌iPhone 16‌ and expanded momentum with the ‌iPhone 17 Pro‌ Max, Samsung increased its presence in the top-10 list to five positions, all from the Galaxy A series.

A separate Counterpoint analysis of the global foldable smartphone sector shows that the premium market segment where Apple has not yet entered continued to grow at a materially faster pace than the broader industry. The firm reports that global foldable shipments increased 14% year-over-year in the third quarter of 2025, which is the highest quarterly shipment volume ever recorded for the category.

Counterpoint attributes much of this performance to Samsung's Galaxy Z 7 series, especially the Galaxy Z Fold 7, which generated "exceptionally strong consumer response" due to a slimmer and lighter enclosure, reduced crease visibility, and an upgraded hinge mechanism designed for improved durability. While Apple has not released a foldable ‌iPhone‌, rumors suggest that the company will debut such a device as soon as next year.

Meanwhile, Counterpoint's U.S. Weekly Smartphone Promotions Index shows that Apple intensified its promotional activity in response to unusually early and aggressive Pixel 10 discounts led by Google. Apple finished the period overtaking Google.
This article, "iPhone 16 Was World's Best-Selling Smartphone in Q3 2025" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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