Prices up, sales down for smartphones in second quarter
The average price of smartphones sold in China jumped 15 percent year-on-year in the second quarter, despite declining sales, researcher IDC said in a recent report.
The demand for the most costly phones comes from consumers who are willing to pay more for a phone targeted to their needs, including not just better cameras but also emerging categories such as gaming, International Data Corp (IDC) said.
"Time spent on mobile phones continues to rise, and vendors should emphasize aspects like industrial design, quality, and brand image to drive replacements in this market," IDC's analyst Xi Wang said.
Besides the price jump, the sale of smartphones in China continued dropping in the quarter, meaning the market is close to "saturation point," industry officials said.
Chinese smartphone market sales was 105 million units during the second quarter, a 5.9 percent year-over-year decline. However, the pace of decline has narrowed compared with the first quarter, IDC said.
The top vendors in China were Huawei, Oppo, Vivo, Xiaomi and Apple.
IDC expects a relatively flat market for China throughout the year, although exchange rates and trade wars are downside risks to watch out for going into the second half.