Huawei leads while iPhone sales back on track for first time in 2 years: Q2 2025

Q2 2025 Chinese smartphone market report is out and Huawei is leading this race, but what is grabbing more attention this time is iPhone sales. Apple is finally making a comeback in its second-largest market for the first time in 2 years.

Counterpoint noted that Apple’s efforts have started paying off. Following a constant struggle of 2 years, the iPhone maker is now seeing positive growth in China.

The report says Apple iPhone and Huawei together are leading the Chinese smartphone sales market in Q2 2025. The Pura/Mate phone maker is at the top with a hike of 12% YoY, and the American tech giant achieved 8% YoY annual growth.

While iPhone sales have bounced back this time, Huawei and other Chinese phone makers are intensifying the competition. Senior Analyst Ivam Lam at Counterpoint said:

“Huawei is still riding high on the loyalty of its core users as they replace their old phones with new Huawei releases.”

Pura X and the Nova 14 series are the perfect example of the “loyal user base” theory. Many netizens swapped their old devices for these phones in recent months due to their new form factors, AI features, HarmonyOS 5.0, and cost-effectiveness.

As a result, Huawei has seemingly recorded the highest growth among major brands to reach the number one spot in China for the quarter.

On the other hand, Apple saw a rise in its Chinese iPhone sales following the 618 shopping festival. Counterpoint says the sales fest and iPhone 16 Pro/Pro Max promotions helped the company to get back on track in China.

Q2 2025 Chinese smartphone market report (Image Credits: Counterpoint)

Ethan Qi, Associate Director at Counterpoint, said:

“Apple’s adjustment of iPhone prices in May was well timed and well received, coming a week ahead of the 618 shopping festival.”

So, is iPhone sales revival a threat to Huawei’s growth in China? Huawei is constantly introducing innovative handsets that help it stand out in the market. Its chip improvements and AI features over AI-less iPhones are other reasons that will likely maintain Huawei’s lead in this race.

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