Rising memory prices continue to weigh on the global smartphone market, with shipments in China alone falling 10% year over year in Q3. Here are the details.

Apple gains ground despite market downturn

A few days ago, IDC reported that smartphone shipments in China fell 15.4% year over year in Q3 2026, with Apple increasing its share of that total to 17.8% despite a 4.3% decline in iPhone shipments.

The report echoed the broader global trend, with IDC estimating that worldwide smartphone shipments fell a record 22% year over year during the quarter, while Apple recorded the smallest decline among the top five manufacturers, at just 4%.

Now, a new report from Counterpoint Research paints a similar picture of China’s smartphone market in Q3, although its estimates differ somewhat from IDC’s.

According to the report, smartphone shipments in China hit a 14-year low during Q3 2026, with a 10% decline year over year.

Apple, on the other hand, accounted for 19.5% of smartphone shipments in China during the…