Chinese smartphone market on slight decline as Huawei sits uneasily on its throne

Canalys released a report last week on the state of the international market, with figures that showed India's growth to overtake the US as the second largest smartphone market in the world. The analytics firm has released more data, this time on the intricacies of the Chinese smartphone market.

China became the largest smartphone market way back in 2012 when it overtook the US. Data from this study by Canalys, however, shows that the Chinese market may be on a decline, with the country registering a 5% drop in shipments in Q3 2017. Of course, there are a number of possible reasons for that, so it's not necessarily a long-term phenomenon.

Speaking of Huawei, the company retains its top spot in the Chinese market, as it recorded an impressive 22 million shipments in Q3, a 23% year-on-year growth rate from 2016. OPPO had the top position at this time last year but has seen a decline to 21 million shipments in Q3 2017, just slightly behind Huawei. Vivo come in third with 20 million shipments, a 26% YOY growth; Xiaomi in fourth with about 16 million, and Apple in fifth with about 11 million. 

Apple, in particular, saw a massive 40% growth rate from its 8 million shipments in Q3 2016, which makes its sales figures this time around its strongest showing in two years.