TECH giant Huawei Technologies Co. emerged as the dominant leader in China’s foldable smartphone market in the first half of this year, according to a report released Monday by research and consulting firm CINNO Research.

The Shenzhen-based firm outsold domestic vendor OPPO and South Korean rival Samsung Electronics Co. to capture a market share of 50% to become the top player in the domestic high-end foldable smartphone market, CINNO Research data showed.

Huawei’s strong showing was buoyed by its latest model Mate X3, which was launched in March and contributed significantly to the company’s sales.

CINNO Research data showed that sales of foldable smartphones in the Chinese market surged 72% year on year in the first half, making it a shining niche segment in the declining smartphone market.

In the first quarter, sales of foldable smartphones in China increased 51% year on year and in the second quarter, sales skyrocketed 99% from a year earlier, allowing the segment to achieve 11 consecutive quarters of positive growth, according to CINNO Research.

However, sales for the whole Chinese smartphone market, the world’s largest, dropped about 10% year on year in the second quarter.

The Mate X3 made outstanding performance and became the best-selling foldable phone in the second quarter, cementing Huawei’s position as the market leader.

OPPO came in second and Samsung, the global smartphone market leader, held the third market share, followed by domestic vendor Vivo and Shenzhen-based brand Honor.

Huawei made inroads into the foldable smartphone segment as early as 2019. The firm has maintained its top position in the domestic foldable smartphone market in sales and brand reputation, thanks to its strong research and development capabilities.

The tech giant once vied with Apple and Samsung to be the world’s biggest handset maker until rounds of U.S. restrictions beginning in 2019 cut its access to chipmaking tools essential for producing its most advanced models.

In the first half of the year, China shipped 2.27 million foldable phones, marking a 102% surge from the same period a year ago, Xinhua quoted global market research firm International Data Corp. as saying.

Among the foldable smartphones sold in China in the first half, 55% were horizontally folding devices, with Huawei leading the segment, followed by Samsung and Honor, CINNO Research data showed. (Yang Yunfei)