Apple’s China iPhone shipments were up 52% in April, in part thanks to discounts offered by the company’s retail partners, reports Bloomberg. The latest figures from the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology showed smartphone shipments surging in the country, of which roughly 3.5 million units came from foreign brands, according to a Bloomberg calculation. The iPhone accounts for the vast majority of such devices, and its bounce back comes after it registered growth in March following steep declines in the first two months of the year.
Apple and its Chinese resellers have been cutting prices since the start of 2024, and those deals are extending into the sale season that accompanies the June 18th shopping festival in the country. Cupertino, California-based Apple had seen double-digit declines in sales of its latest generation of handsets, as it lost premium market share to Huawei Technologies Co.
“The growth reflects two things: Apple was preparing for the 618 online shopping festival, which we could see from its recent price discounts,” said Will Wong, an analyst at industry tracker IDC. “The resilient high-end users showed signs of buying better mobile devices to use for a longer time, which in turn will lead to longer replacement cycles.”