Chinese smartphone makers dominate Russian market: report
China’s market share in Russia’s smartphone market rose significantly in May as manufacturers including Apple and Samsung halted sales in Russia and the Russian economy was hit by Western sanctions.
According to data from mobile network MTS shared with Reuters, Chinese manufacturers Xiaomi, Realme and Honor accounted for 42 percent of Russian smartphone sales in May 2022, up from 28 percent in the same month last year.
South Korea’s Samsung lost its position as market leader, with 14 percent of devices sold, compared to 28 percent last year. Apple’s share also fell from 12 percent to 9 percent.
According to MTS, total smartphone sales fell 26 percent year-on-year as Western sanctions and supply chain disruptions hit Russia’s consumer economy hard.
Apple and Samsung have halted sales of new products in Russia after Moscow sent its army into Ukraine in late February, but retailers were still able to use up their existing stocks.
The Kremlin has also taken steps to allow Russian companies to ship certain products, including smartphones, without the permission of the licensee, a so-called “parallel import” arrangement.
Samsung announced in March that it had suspended shipments to Russia due to “geopolitical developments.” The South Korean tech giant is the world’s largest maker of memory chips and the largest smartphone seller in Russia. “Due to the current geopolitical developments, shipments to Russia have been suspended,” Samsung said in a statement. “We continue to actively monitor this complex situation to determine our next steps.”
In early March, major U.S. brands including Apple, Google, Ford and Harley-Davidson halted sales and distanced themselves from Russia over its invasion of Ukraine. They joined a growing list of companies, from carriers to automakers to energy firms, that are shunning the country. Apple said it had halted sales of iPhones and other products in Russia, Alphabet’s Google removed Russian state-owned publishers from its news, Ford Motor told its Russian manufacturing partner it was suspending operations in the country, and Harley-Davidson suspended its business and deliveries of its motorcycles.
