Xiaomi beats Apple to become world's No 2 smartphone maker

Xiaomi overtook Apple in the second quarter of 2021 to become the world's No 2 smartphone maker, market research firm Canalys said in a report on Thursday. 

Xiaomi took the second spot for the first time with 17 per cent share of worldwide smartphone shipments, up 3 per cent from the previous quarter, according to the market research firm. 

Global smartphone shipments grew 12 per cent in the second quarter, led by Samsung Electronics with a 19 per cent share, and Apple at third place with a 14 per cent share. 

The average selling price of Xiaomi phones is about 40 per cent to 75 per cent cheaper compared with Samsung and Apple, respectively, Canalys Research Manager Ben Stanton said, adding that a major priority for Xiaomi this year is to grow sales of its high-end devices. 

The company's shipments jumped more than 300 per cent in Latin America, 150 per cent in Africa, and 50 per cent in Western Europe, the report said. 

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Vivo and Oppo maintained a strong growth momentum to complete the top five smartphone makers' global ranking, according to the report. Both Oppo and Vivo secured a 10 per cent share of global shipments each in Q2 2021 and secured the number 4 and number 5 spots, respectively.  

Samsung on top had a steady growth of 15 per cent in year-on-year shipments, while Xiaomi's global shipments grew by a staggering 83 per cent and Apple at number 3 grew marginally by 1 per cent, the report shows. Oppo and Vivo shipments increased by 28 per cent and 27 per cent, respectively.