Apple offers holiday discount in China as Huawei competition heats up

Apple is offering discounts on its top-end iPhones and other products in China for the upcoming Chinese New Year as the U.S. tech giant faces heightened competition in one of its most crucial markets.

The Cupertino giant is giving customers 500 Chinese yuan ($68.50) off of the iPhone 16 Pro or iPhone 16 Pro Max, and 400 yuan off the iPhone 16 or iPhone 16 Plus. Offers also include discounts for the iPhone 14 and iPhone 15.

For a long time Apple has resisted offering discounts through its own retail channels. Instead, third-party retailers would offer deals at certain times of the year. However, as competition ramps up, Apple has been more inclined in the last year to post seasonal deals.

Apple offered a similar Chinese New Year deal last year and in May, the company offered hefty discounts as part of China’s 618 shopping festival.

The firm’s latest challenge has come from a resurgent Huawei and other domestic brands. Apple smartphone shipments fell 6% year-on-year in mainland China in the third quarter of 2024, according to Canalys. The company’s market share also slipped to 14% from 16% a year earlier.

Huawei meanwhile saw shipments jump 24% year-on-year, Canalys data shows, while the company’s market share hit 16% from 13% a year earlier.

Huawei, which was once the number one smartphone player in the world before U.S. sanctions crippled its handset business, has aggressively launched new devices since the latter half of 2023. These devices contain chips that many had thought would be difficult to produce due to U.S. restrictions on Huawei.

Last year, the Chinese tech firm launched a first-of-its-kind trifold phone in a bid to show off its technological capabilities.