The iPhone maker, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) has performed exceptionally well in the Asian markets with its latest iPhone 6 devices. This is the first time when a foreign brand has gained market share in excess of 20 percent in South Korea while taking away the majority market share from the world’s number one smartphone maker, Samsung Electronics Co Ltd (KRX:005930).
According to a latest report from Counterpoint, market Research Company in Hong Kong, Apple achieved 33 percent market share in South Korea in November 2014, which is the highest for any foreign brand. On the contrary, Samsung Electronics Co Ltd (KRX:005930) lost its market share of nearly 60 percent to close at 46 percent in November. It is important to consider that November was the first month during which iPhone 6 devices were sold for the entire 30 days.
Tom Kang, analyst at Counterpoint, pointed out the supply deficiency of iPhone devices and added,
“If there was a better supply of iPhone 6 and 6 Plus 64 GB and 128 GB models, then Apple’s share could have climbed to the 40 percent level.”
South Korea was not the only country where Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) increased its share tremendously with iPhone 6 devices. The market share of Apple increased from 20 percent to over 51 percent in Japan. With a strong opposition from Chinese smartphone makers including Xiaomi and Lenovo, Apple could gain 12 percent market share in China.
iPhone 6 and 6 Plus devices have redefined the company at several fronts and Katy Huberty, analyst at Morgan Stanley, is expecting record sales of up to 69 million units in the fourth quarter 2014. At the same time, Ms. Huberty expects Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) to sell up to 50 million iPhone devices in the second quarter of 2015.
The shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) have soared in excess of 10 percent since the launch of iPhone 6 devices trading at $109.55 with current market cap of $636.71 billion.
This article has been written by Prakash Pandey.
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