Xiaomi remains on top for the fourth straight quarter with shipment of more than 12 million units during the period, witnessing a growth of 30% over the previous year
India’s shipments of smartphone recorded a marginal decline of 0.9% in the third quarter of 2018. The country shipped 40.4 million units during July-September quarter compared to 40.8 million in same period last year, according to a report by market analyst firm – Canalys.
Xiaomi retains the top spot
Xiaomi remains on top for the fourth straight quarter with shipment of more than 12 million units during the period, witnessing a growth of 30% over the previous year. Samsung, Oppo, Vivo and Micromax also made to the top 5 list. However, Micromax’s entry into the top 5, is quite surprising due to an order with a state government, Canalys said.
Samsung holds the second position in the quarter, shipping 9.3 million smartphones, accounting to 23% of the smartphone market in India. It was followed by Vivo which shipped 4.5 million smartphones and Oppo came fourth shipping 3.6 million units in the third quarter of this year. While Vivo recorded the growth on yearly basis, Oppo’s self-branded smartphones shipments declined by 24%, the report said.
Micromax enters the top 5 club
Homegrown handset maker Micromax shipped 2.6 million smartphones in the July-September quarter. The company’s shipment of smartphones increased by five times in the third quarter as compared to same period last year, making it the best performing Indian vendor in the past few years.
Micromax’s re-entry into the domestic phone market is assisted by a deal with Chhattisgarh state government. Under the deal, Micromax and Reliance Jio would deliver smartphones and telecom services to five million women and college students in the state.
Micromax is not expected to displace the Chinese brands – Xiaomi, Vivo and Oppo in India in the near term. But the company’s return marks a shift in the business strategies of domestic vendors, the report noted.
