Investing.com - Shipments of foreign-branded smartphones, which include tech giant Apple's (NASDAQ:AAPL) flagship iPhone, slumped by 47.4% in November versus a year earlier, according to data from a government-linked researched firm.
The figures from the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology pointed to a fourth consecutive monthly decline, with foreign handset shipments into China coming in at 3.04 million units during the month. In the prior year period, the measure stood at 5.769 million.
Apple in particular has been grappling with ongoing sluggishness in the Chinese economy, which has fueled concerns over deflationary pressures and raised uncertainty around the state of consumer spending.
Meanwhile, fierce competition from domestic players like Huawei has weighed on California-based Apple's presence in the country. According to data from research firm IDC cited by Reuters, Apple's iPhone sales dropped by 0.3% in the third quarter from a year ago, but Huawei's soared by 42%. In the second quarter, Apple temporarily lost its position as one of the top five mobile phone sellers in China.
In response to the pressures, the group has recently moved to offer new discounts on its latest high-end iPhone models in bid to boost demand in China, the world's largest smartphone market.
During a four-day promotional drive from Jan. 4-7, Apple will unveil discounts of up to 500 yuan on its iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max models. The price tags for its iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus offerings will be slashed by 400 yuan as well.
Apple will also cut the prices for its older iPhone models, along with other products like its MacBook laptops and iPad tablets, by between 200 to 300 yuan. Only customers using specific payment methods, including ones through Alipay and WeChat Pay, will be able to access the discounts.
Shares in Apple were slightly lower in premarket US trading on Friday. The stock, which constitutes a section of the so-called "Magnificent Seven" group of big-name tech players that drove strength in equity markets throughout 2024, has risen by more than 32% over the past year.
(Reuters contributed reporting.)