It hasn't been smooth sailing for Samsung in China. It's having to deal with strong competition from local rivals while the political tensions between South Korea and China aren't helping as well. The latest estimates from market research firms show that Samsung accounted for only 3 percent of the country's smartphone market in the second quarter of this year.
A new report by the Korea International Trade Association revealed that at the end of June 2017, customers in China owned 48 million Samsung smartphones. This makes Samsung the sixth largest smartphone vendor in the lucrative Chinese market. It has slipped two places compared to the first quarter of last year.
Apple took the top spot in Q2 2017 as it accounted for 171 million handsets. Huawei, Oppo, Vivo and Xiaomi ranked second to fifth respectively.
Nearly 63 percent of the smartphones that were sold in China in the second quarter of this year were entry-level and mid-range handsets which cost less than 2,000 yuan or $300. Customers in China are evidently preferring cheap local alternatives over Samsung's expensive high-end handsets.
High-end smartphones accounted for only 6.4 percent of overall sales in the second quarter and the iPhone stormed ahead with an absolute majority in this segment of the market.
The report calls on Samsung to restore the confidence of Chinese consumers in its smartphones. “Samsung should regain customer confidence in its brand and establish a base of loyal customer again,” it says.
