Chinese brands grab 39 percent of Vietnam smartphone market

They grew respectively by 363 percent and 193 percent, according to the HongKong-based company’s recent release.

“Further, amid the US-China trade war, the RMB (renminbi) is weakening, resulting in cheaper Chinese products in Vietnam. This will favor the Chinese brands, which now hold around 39 percent of the market in Vietnam,” said Tarun Pathak, Counterpoint associate director.

Vietnamese smartphone brands face stiff competition from not only Chinese but also other international brands, he said.

The report noted that Xiaomi had only 1 percent of the market share in the second quarter of 2017, but it surged to 5 percent a year later.

Overall, Chinese brands have a market share of around 39 percent in the form of Oppo (22 percent), Xiaomi (5), Huawei (5), and other smaller names.

Besides, the report said Huawei has tied up with local gaming firm VNG to enter the industry.

Varun Mishra, a research analyst, added that Chinese companies such as Alibaba, JD.com and Tencent have invested heavily in the Vietnamese e-commerce market, which would give a “further boost to the Chinese players who have leveraged both offline and online platforms to sustain growth in similar markets.”

“While the Chinese players are actively targeting mid-tier segments, local players are being pushed toward the entry level segment.”

South Korean giant Samsung still dominates the smartphone market with a 37 percent share.

Vietnamese conglomerate Vingroup has also entered the market. Vingroup hopes to launch its phones next year.

By the end of March 2018, Vietnam has 118.7 million mobile subscriptions, according to official data.