Xiaomi rises to third in global smartphone shipments in Q3 2020

Xiaomi entered the top three in the global smartphone market after a massive 45 per cent growth year on year, data from research firm Canalys shows.

Samsung regained the lead, up 2 per cent to 80.2 million units. In second place was Huawei, which saw shipments fall by 23 per cent fall to 51.7 million units as the US Google ban started to bite. Xiaomi, in third place, sold 47.1 million units in Q3 2020 and seems to have been the main beneficiary of Huawei woes.

Apple, whose iPhone 12 launch was delayed, slipped to fourth, shipping 43.2 million, down 1 per cent. Vivo completed the top five, shipping 31.8 million units. Oppo came sixth, with 31.1 million units, while its sister brand Realme moved into seventh, its highest ever position, with 15.1 million units.

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Lenovo reported 10.2 million units, as it finally caught up with orders delayed due to disruption at its Wuhan factory, Canalys said. Africa-focused Transsion followed, shipping 8.4 million units as recovery started in its key African markets.

“Xiaomi executed with aggression to seize shipments from Huawei,” said Mo Jia, an analyst at Canalys. “There was symmetry in Q3, as Xiaomi added 14.5 million units and Huawei lost 15.1 million. In Europe, a key battleground, Huawei’s shipments fell 25 per cent, while Xiaomi’s grew 88 per cent.”

Canalys analyst Shengtao Jin says Samsung was helped by rising anti-Chinese sentiment in India, where it regained second place. Smartphone shipments in India recovered in Q3 2020, posting 8 per cent growth to 50 million units. This is a record for smartphone shipments in a single quarter in India, according to the research firm.