Reporter Wang Jing
In recent months, there has been some frequent price reductions for apples.
At present, Apple China's official website has launched a limited time promotion to welcome the Chinese New Year. The official website's announcement shows that from January 18th to January 21st, purchasing Apple designated products through eligible payment methods can save up to 800 yuan.
Specifically, including purchasing iPhone 15 series, iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Plus, or iPhone 13 through eligible payment methods, up to a maximum of 500 yuan can be saved; 13 inch or 15 inch MacBook Air (M2 chip model), or 13 inch MacBook Air (M1 chip model), can save up to 800 yuan instantly; IPad Pro, iPad Air, iPad (10th generation) or iPad mini, can save up to 400 yuan and so on.
However, this is not the first price reduction for Apple's flagship iPhone 15 series models. At the end of October 2023, Apple made a rare adjustment to the price of the iPhone 15 series model, which had just been released for over a month. At that time, Apple's self operated flagship store on JD.com offered a coupon discount of up to 801 yuan for iPhone 15 series phones; Starting from 8pm on October 31, 2023, the official flagship store of Apple and Tmall will offer a discount coupon of 700 yuan for iPhone 15/Plus; The iPhone 15 Pro/Pro Max comes with a 500 yuan coupon.
The price reduction has had an immediate effect. According to a research report released by Tianfeng Securities at the end of December 2023, citing BCI data, in November 2023, the number of new smartphone activations in the domestic market was 28.71 million, a year-on-year increase of 12.7%. Among them, Apple ranked first with a market share of 21.1%. However, in the first week of "Double Eleven" sales, Huawei's mobile phone sales increased by 368000 units; Xiaomi's mobile phone sales increased by 437000 units, a year-on-year increase of over 40%, becoming the top domestic mobile phone activation volume in the first week of sales on Double Eleven. In contrast, Apple's smartphone sales decreased by 154000 units year-on-year.
Photo taken by journalist Zhang Jian (data image)
In addition, Apple's frequent price reductions have also sparked speculation from the outside world that consumers have had a lackluster response to Apple's iPhone 15 series products. Analysts at Jefferies, a Wall Street investment bank, reported in a report that Apple's iPhone sales in China decreased by 30% in the first week of 2024. Research firm Counterpoint Research also stated in a report at the end of October last year that the sales of the iPhone 15 series in the first 17 days after its launch in China decreased by 4.5% compared to the iPhone 14 series.
Talking about Apple's price reduction and promotion behavior, IDC China Senior Analyst Guo Tianxiang analyzed to the Daily Economic News reporter that: First of all, it should be confirmed that the official website price reduction this time is only a limited time discount promotion, and offline stores are still limited in quantity. It is uncertain how long this promotion will last and whether there will be further promotions in the future. Secondly, the iPhone 15 series has always been discounted on e-commerce platforms, and the discounts have continued since Double Eleven, even with greater discounts. Finally, at the beginning of this year, Apple has already been the first to adjust the channel price of the iPhone 15 series The adjustment has been made for the first time in history, indicating that there is still greater room for price adjustment in some third-party channels and e-commerce platforms. Overall, the main reason is that the upgrade of the iPhone 15 series itself has limited appeal to Chinese consumers
Guo Tianxiang also stated: "The current increase in competitiveness of Chinese brands in flagship products is not only due to Huawei's return, but also to Xiaomi's 14 series, vivo's X100 series, and Honor's foldable screen series, which have put significant pressure on Apple's market performance. However, it cannot be denied that although facing increasing challenges, Apple's overall competitiveness is still the strongest, so after significant price discounts, it will still attract more consumers to purchase."
In fact, even though domestic mobile phone manufacturers are becoming increasingly competitive in terms of software and hardware, the iPhone is still the best-selling phone in China last year. According to BCI data, China sold a total of 270 million smartphones last year. Based on the activation volume of new devices, the top six domestic players in 2023 were Apple, vivo, OPPO, Honor, Xiaomi, and Huawei, accounting for a total of 91.5%. Compared to the ranking in 2022, the biggest change is that Apple, with an average selling price of over 7000 yuan, has surpassed Vivo. The debut of a 3-nanometer chip, replacement of data cable interfaces, and rare price reduction promotions have all stimulated the growth of Apple's smartphone sales.
However, based on market rankings, Huawei is becoming a powerful challenger. After launching smartphones such as the Mate 60 series and the foldable screen Mate X5 that have returned to 5G network speed, Huawei's market share has quickly returned. Guo Minggui, an analyst at Tianfeng International, previously stated on social media that the shipment plan of Huawei Mate60 Pro in the second half of 2023 has increased by about 20% to 5.5-6 million units, and the cumulative shipment volume after 12 months of release will reach at least 12 million units. Excluding potential non commercial risks, benefiting from the demand and market influence of the Mate 60 Pro, Huawei's mobile phone shipments will increase by approximately 65% year-on-year to 38 million units in 2023. Looking ahead to 2024, Huawei's mobile phone shipments will reach at least 60 million units.
Regarding the phenomenon of Apple's price reduction, market research firm Canalys told reporters, "This promotional event is not a significant event and should not be interpreted excessively. However, it does indicate the challenges that Apple is facing in the mainland Chinese market."
According to Canalys data, Apple's shipment volume in mainland China decreased year-on-year in the fourth quarter of 2023. The pressure Apple faces in China is twofold. On the one hand, Huawei's new products are increasingly competitive with other Android manufacturers, who are strengthening their product supply. On the other hand, we believe that Apple's participation in promotional activities is still valuable as it can stimulate consumer interest in device upgrades and enhance Apple's competitive advantage. Importantly, Apple's official promotional activities provide more confidence and flexibility for retail channels "To enable it to launch more promotional and subsidy activities, further driving Apple's sales in the region."
Furthermore, it is worth noting that despite a decline in Apple's shipment volume, Apple still maintains a market share of approximately 66% in the domestic price range above $800.
