India’s smartphone market – dominated by affordable Chinese brands – is rapidly emerging as a bright spot for Apple Inc, with the iPhone maker posting record December-quarter revenue in the country.
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The robust revenue growth was spurred by iPhones as well as increasing adoption of Apple products by enterprises, the Cupertino, California-based company’s management said on an analyst call Friday.
Tim Cook, CEO at Apple, said the company also clocked December-quarter revenue records in other emerging markets like Indonesia, Saudi Arabia and Chile.
“Emerging markets have been a very key area of strength for us…India grew in revenue terms, strong double digits in the December quarter and hit a quarter revenue record,” he said.
Apple on Friday reported 2% year-on-year (YoY) growth in revenue at $119.6 billion in the three months ended December 31, with iPhone revenue growing 6% YoY at $69.7 billion.
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The company said it scored revenue records in over two dozen countries and regions.
Apple’s long-term interest in India
These included Latin America, western Europe, the Middle East and Korea.
According to industry researcher Counterpoint Research, Apple’s smartphone shipments crossed the 10-million milestone in India in 2023, a 46% increase. During the year, Apple also became the largest smartphone brand in India by revenue for the first time ever.
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In contrast, the Indian smartphone market remained flat last year. The premium smartphone segment with handsets priced above Rs 30,000 grew 64%, largely driven by Apple and Samsung. The iPhone had around 6.6% share of the overall market.
