Apple shipped a record 2.5 million units in India during 2016

Counterpoint’s Market Monitor report has said that a third of Apple’s total shipping in India came in the fourth-quarter following the launch of the iPhone 7. Apple was able to capture the number 10 position in the smartphone rankings in the country during Q4 of 2016, but led the segment for premium smartphones by managing a 62 per cent share in that market.

The report also found that smartphone shipments in India grew at a healthy 18 per cent annually in 2016, as compared to just 3 per cent globally. Chinese smartphone brands contributed for 46 per cent of the total smartphone market during the fourth-quarter of 2016, with no India smartphone maker among the top 5.

“While the demonetization had its impact on the local players, it will be unfair to take credit from Chinese players that continue to expand their presence throughout India, riding on aggressive portfolio strategies and substantial marketing spends,” the report explained.

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Feature phones were able to grow 4 per cent year-over-year, with the feature phone to smartphone transition slowing in second half of 2016, and due to the strong performance from low cost brands like iTel. Mobile smartphone shipments declined 17 per cent quarter-on-quarter during Q4 2016.

The report also added that 83 million smartphones that were shipped in India were in fact ‘Made in India’, with three out of four smartphones in Q4 2016 manufactured domestically. “Chinese brands OPPO, vivo, Lenovo and Xiaomi continued to grow at the expense of Samsung and Indian brands,” the report concludes.