What it is advisable to know
- Honor is bucking the slowdown, with shipments leaping 35% within the Center East whilst the general market fell 13%.
- Honor can also be gaining throughout a number of areas: Shipments climbed 53% in Africa and 15% in Southeast Asia, with sturdy development in Malaysia and the Philippines.
- Rivals like Xiaomi, Oppo, and Vivo suffered double-digit world cargo drops in Q2 resulting from their heavy publicity to finances segments hit by element prices.
Whereas the smartphone market is getting squeezed from either side, with weaker demand and rising reminiscence prices, one Chinese language cellphone maker appears to be discovering room to develop throughout a few of the business’s hardest markets.
New information from market analysis agency Omdia finds the Center East smartphone market fell 13% total within the first half of 2026, however Honor grew its shipments 35% year-over-year. That raised its market share from 10% to fifteen%, holding it in second place for a second consecutive quarter.
Globally, Counterpoint Analysis says Samsung reclaimed the smartphone lead in Q2 with a 24% share and recorded the strongest year-over-year development among the many prime 5 manufacturers. The Galaxy S26 collection, particularly the Extremely, helped cushion weaker demand for cheaper telephones.
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Xiaomi, Oppo and Vivo have not had such a fortunate run. All three noticed double-digit cargo declines globally in Q2 resulting from rising reminiscence prices which have hit their heavier publicity to entry-level and midrange telephones, based on Counterpoint. Oppo and Vivo got here in fourth and fifth locations, whereas Xiaomi nonetheless had 12% of the worldwide share.
Honor’s enlargement isn’t confined to 1 area. Its shipments rose 53% in Africa in H1, whereas Southeast Asia grew 15% in a shrinking market. The model additionally ranked because the quickest rising main vendor in Malaysia and the Philippines in Q2.
An necessary exception is Huawei. Counterpoint says its Q2 shipments in China rose 24%, giving it a 23% market share and the highest spot. Apple additionally gained 23% in China, exhibiting that premium telephones are holding up higher than the broader market.
Honor can also be leaning exhausting into that very same premium pattern. IDC reported that in Q2 it captured 53% of the foldable market in Malaysia, 67% in Singapore, and an unimaginable 89% in Hong Kong.
That makes Honor’s 9% world H1 cargo development all of the extra fascinating: it was the one Chinese language Android producer among the many prime manufacturers to submit year-over-year development, based on IDC.
The trick now could be to maintain that momentum amid ongoing reminiscence shortages and rising element costs that proceed to squeeze the business.

