Xiaomi Overtakes Apple, Becomes The World’s Third-Largest Smartphone Maker

• The company had record-high shipments that happened three months, up to the end of September.
• Apple, its closest rival, slipped to fourth place.
• The troubles of Huawei contributed to Xiaomi’s rise in numbers.

Xiaomi has made history by overtaking Apple in the smartphone market. The Chinese brand recently became the third largest smartphone producer in the world, according to three research firms – Counterpoint, Canalys, and  International Data Corporation.

This is the first time that Xiaomi had gained such status. It’s the result of record-high shipments that happened three months, up to the end of September.

According to data, the company gained more than 40 percent growth, with shipped units numbering between 46 million and 47.1 million.

Apple, its closest rival, was relegated to fourth place. Data shows that the company shipped 41.6 million iPhones during the third quarter. This number was down more than 10 percent on year-on-year basis.

The troubles of Huawei is part of the reason behind Xiaomi’s success. The latter’s domestic competitor lost its place as the biggest smarphone manufacturer in the global market to Samsung.

The Korean phone maker shipped around 80 million units while Huawei shipped 30 million less units during the third quarter.

According to some analysts, Huawei has lost some of its customers to Xiaomi. Mo Jia, analyst at Canalys, said that Xiaomi “executed with aggression to seize shipments from Huawei.”

“There was symmetry in Q3, as Xiaomi added 14.5 million units and Huawei lost 15.1 million. In Europe, a key battleground, Huawei’s shipments fell 25 percent, while Xiaomi’s grew 88 percent,” he said.

Huawei’s troubles stemmed from its conflicts with the U.S. government. President Donald Trump banned American companies from doing business with Huawei. This led to Huawei losing access to Google Android software updates for its smartphones.

The U.S. government put the pressure on Huawei by targeting its key chip suppliers. Foreign manufacturers that utilize software and technology from the U.S. have to get a special license before they can ship products to Huawei.