Huawei smartphones plummet by 42% due to Trump sanctions

In one year, the Chinese hi-tech giant goes from first to sixth place in the world market share. Biden Administration: Beijing companies threaten our national security. Apple and Samsung take advantage of Huawei's downfall. Sales of Xiaomi, also in Washington's sights, are growing.

Beijing (AsiaNews / Agencies) - Huawei sold 42% fewer smartphones in the last quarter of 2020, moving from first to sixth place in the world sales ranking. Calculations of Counterpoint Research, published on January 28, conclude the collapse is due to the sanctions imposed by the Trump administration on the Chinese tech giant.

The former US president has repeatedly accused Huawei of spying on behalf of the government; since last February, the Chinese company has not been able to purchase microchips produced by US companies or by companies from other countries which however use US technology. The component is essential in the production of latest generation mobile phones. Under pressure from Washington, many states have also given up on acquiring Huawei's 5G system, considered a world leader in the sector.

Between October and December of last year, Huawei sold 32.3 million smartphones: in the same period of 2019, sales had reached 56.2 million. Its world market share has dropped from 14 to 8%, and forecasts for the future are for a further deterioration.

The new US president Joe Biden stressed that he will continue to exert pressure on Chinese hi-tech companies. Jen Psaki, a spokesman for Biden, said on January 27 that "systems manufactured by unreliable vendors like Huawei are a threat to the security of the United States and its allies."

Apple and Samsung have benefited from Huawei's downfall. The Californian giant sold 90.1 million smartphones in the last quarter of last year, an annual growth of 32%, which leads it to control 23.4% of the market.

The large South Korean company instead recorded an increase of 10.7%. Huawei was also overtaken by an internal competitor, Xiaomi, which became the third largest seller in the world. The outlook is also not good for this Chinese manufacturer, sanctioned by Trump just before leaving the White House.