China Smartphone Prices Rise as Huawei Gains Share and Xiaomi Falls

China's smartphone market saw a broad round of price increases on September 1, with Huawei, Honor and Xiaomi raising prices on multiple models by several hundred yuan to as much as 1,000 yuan, according to Jiemian News. Counterpoint data showed Huawei's share of China's smartphone market rose to 23% in the second quarter of 2026, up from 18% a year earlier, while Apple's share increased to 18% from 15%; Xiaomi's shipments in China fell more than 20%, the steepest decline among the six major vendors. The report said higher memory costs are squeezing low-end phones first, prompting Xiaomi, OPPO and vivo to cut some cheaper models and shift new products toward higher price bands. Globally, Omdia said second-quarter smartphone shipments fell 6% year on year, with Samsung and Apple growing while Xiaomi, OPPO and vivo declined. Counterpoint also said the top 10 best-selling smartphones worldwide in the quarter were all from Apple and Samsung, which each accounted for five models.