Apple Launches Discounts to Counter Huawei’s Competition

News Desk

Islamabad: Apple is offering discounts of up to 500 yuan ($68.50) on its latest iPhone models in China, a move aimed at defending its market share against increasing competition from domestic brands like Huawei.

The four-day promotion, running from January 4 to 7, applies to several iPhone models when purchased using specific payment methods, as outlined on Apple’s official website.

The iPhone 16 Pro, starting at 7,999 yuan, and the iPhone 16 Pro Max, starting at 9,999 yuan, will receive the largest discount of 500 yuan. Meanwhile, the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus will see a reduction of 400 yuan.

This promotion comes at a time when consumer spending in China remains cautious due to the country’s slowing economy and deflationary pressures. China’s consumer inflation reached a five-month low in November.

Apple faces growing challenges in China, the world’s largest smartphone market, as local manufacturers, particularly Huawei, ramp up competition.

Huawei, which re-entered the premium smartphone segment in August 2023 with domestically-produced chipsets, has been a formidable rival. In fact, Huawei recently slashed prices on a range of high-end devices by as much as 3,000 yuan on one of China’s leading e-commerce platforms.

Apple briefly dropped out of China’s top five smartphone vendors in the second quarter of 2024 but regained ground in the third quarter. However, Apple’s smartphone sales in China still declined by 0.3% year-on-year during that period, while Huawei’s sales surged 42%, according to research firm IDC.

In addition to iPhones, the promotion also includes discounts ranging from 200 to 300 yuan on older iPhone models, as well as reductions on other Apple products, such as MacBook laptops and iPad tablets.

To qualify for the discounts, customers must use designated payment methods, including WeChat Pay or Alipay.