In a better-than-expected second quarter for the smartwatch market, India saw shipments soar 347% year-on-year to top China on the post. Beijing’s “zero Covid” policy penalizes Chinese brands.
In the second quarter, the connected watch market held up better than expected despite a pessimistic outlook, against a backdrop of war in Ukraine, a shortage of electronic components and inflation which is stifling consumers’ purchasing power. In this difficult economic climate, global shipments of connected watches increased by 13% over one year, according to the latest figures revealed by the firm Counterpoint. “The market did relatively well in the second quarter compared to the downtrend we expected three months ago”commented Sujeong Lim, industry analyst for Counterpoint.
Between April and June, it was above all the Indian market that impressed, with a spectacular leap of 347% year-on-year. This performance enabled India (22% of the world market) to overtake China (21%), penalized by its “zero Covid” policy which caused its shipments to drop by 10%, and thus to seize the second place in the global connected watch market. “As expected, China’s economic slowdown led to a year-on-year decline in its market, with major Chinese brands such as Huawei, imoo and Amazfit seeing limited year-on-year growth or decline”says Sujeong Lim.
North America still ranks first in the world with a market share of 26%, down 5% year-on-year. As for Europe, third in the previous quarter, it fell to fourth place with a 13% drop in shipments in the midst of the war in Ukraine. At the same time, the Indian companies Fire-Boltt (6.3% of the global market) and Noise (5.9%) were booming, to the point of succeeding in climbing into the top 5 global brands in the sector. “During the quarter, 30% of models shipped to the Indian market sold for less than $50, and major local brands launched profitable models, lowering barriers to entry for consumers”says Sujeong Lim.
Apple, comfortable leader but a little less powerful
The Indian brands Fire-Boltt and Noise are only overtaken by Huawei (6.8%), Samsung (9.2%) and above all Apple (29.3%), still an untouchable leader who is however losing ground against the competition. . The Cupertino company, which saw its shipments increase by 8% year on year in the second quarter, now holds 29.3% of the market, against 36.1% at the end of the first three months of the year. The Apple Watch Series 7, which is efficient without being revolutionary, is no longer as successful, and consumers are now waiting for the next keynote from the apple brand, which will be held on September 7, to discover a new watch. On this occasion, a Pro model full of new features, sporting a finally different design, could be unveiled.
Behind Apple, Samsung recorded 40% growth in the second quarter. The South Korean manufacturer is still worn by its Galaxy Watch 4, which is particularly popular in North America and India. On the third step of the podium, Huawei saw its shipments increase by 13% year-on-year despite heavy restrictions in China to stem the resurgence of Covid-19. The Chinese giant can however console itself with a leading position in its domestic market for the third consecutive quarter. But the future will be through a greater presence in India if Huawei is to get back into the fight with Samsung on a global scale.