Canalys: Apple Retakes Top Spot in Global Smartphone Market, Xiaomi Ranks No. 3

According to a report released by data research organization Canalys on Tuesday, Apple is back at the top of the smartphone market in Q4 2021 with a market share of 22%, thanks to strong demand for the iPhone 13.

Samsung took second place, down from the top spot in Q3 2021, with a market share of 20%. Xiaomi maintained its third-place position with a 12% share. OPPO and Vivo completed the top five with 9% and 8% shares respectively.

Prior to this, the data from Counterpoint Research on January 13 showed that the iPhone 13 ranked first in sales in China for six consecutive weeks.

“Apple is back at the top of the smartphone market after three quarters, driven by a stellar performance from the iPhone 13,” said Canalys Analyst Sanyam Chaurasia. “Apple’s supply chain is starting to recover, but it was still forced to cut production in Q4 amid shortages of key components and could not make enough iPhones to meet demand.”

SEE ALSO: CAICT: China’s 5G Smartphone Shipments Rise 63.5% to 266 million units in 2021

The supply chain issues hampered market growth, so the quarterly shipments for Q4 last year were just 1% higher than the same period in 2020. Component shortages will only start to ease off in the second part of this year, predict the analysts.