Apple’s iPhone sales in India had their strongest quarter yet, a sign that the Cupertino, California-based company is finally making headway in the world’s fastest-growing smartphone market. Sales of iPhones in India rose to 2.3 million in the fourth quarter of last year, up 34 percent from a year earlier, according to market research firm Counterpoint.
China’s Xiaomi and South Korea’s Samsung Electronics led the way with sales of 9.3 million and 7.2 million smartphones, respectively, in the quarter. However, according to Counterpoint’s calculations, Apple’s revenue appears to be higher than any of its competitors due to the high price of the iPhone. Apple’s quarterly revenue is estimated at $2.09 billion, slightly ahead of Samsung, which is at about $2 billion.
This is a turning point for Apple in India, said Neil Shah, partner and head of research at Counterpoint Technology Market Research in Mumbai. During the pandemic, Indians are willing to spend money on high-end phones because everyone’s life revolves around their phones and there’s nothing else to buy.
While Apple has become the world’s most valuable company thanks to the popularity of the iPhone, it has struggled in India, a market of 1.3 billion people. Expensive iPhones are far beyond the reach of many local consumers, exacerbated by the hefty import duties Apple pays on phones made abroad.
In 2018, Apple suffered multiple executive departures and slumping sales in India, and its online discounts angered local retail partners and sparked protests. Apple sold 1.8 million iPhones for the year that year, down from sales in the most recent quarter. However, the tech giant’s strategy has shifted dramatically since then.
It opened its own online store in India, simplified discounts, and started manufacturing iPhones locally. The company plans to open self-operated retail stores in several cities in the coming quarters.
During the recent October-December festive shopping and gift-giving season in India, the phone maker priced its base iPhone 12 for just under 50,000 rupees ($668), offering cashback rewards and easy payment plans.
Apple is still hard to sell in India, where per capita income in 2020 is less than $2,000, according to the World Bank. In the most recent quarter, the average selling price of an iPhone in India was $908, compared with $278 for Samsung and $172 for Xiaomi, Counterpoint data shows.
While Apple’s market share rose, it remained in the single-digits above 5% for the quarter. Indians bought 44 million smartphones during this period.
Apple also faces challenges beyond market price in India. Apple’s manufacturing partners Foxconn Technology Group and Wistron Corp. have been hit in India over worker treatment issues. In addition, India’s antitrust watchdog, the Competition Commission of India, has begun an investigation into app store fees.