The iPhone has become a status symbol among the youth in China. That has been a driving force behind the sales growth of Apple’s smartphone in the country.
Huawei’s new flagship phone seemed to be the homemade answer to Beijing’s growing concerns over this trend. But longer term, taking on Apple will come at a steep cost.
The latest figures are encouraging for Huawei. The Chinese tech group’s net profit for the September quarter, which included early sales of its flagship Mate 60 Pro smartphone series, more than doubled. The phones, priced at about $1,200, have become a sellout success in China, with sales reaching 1.6mn units in the first six weeks of its launch in late August.