Xiaomi handset sales put 2015 targets in doubt

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By Larry Banks

This week Chinese smartphone company Xiaomi said it managed to sell 34.7 million devices in the first six months of the year, meaning the company looks increasingly unlikely to achieve its full year target.

Chief Executive Lei Jun said last year that the “Apple of China” was aiming for 100 million shipments in 2015, but has since revise the figure to a more realistic range of 80 to 100 million.

Xiaomi might miss 2015 targets

The new sales data indicates that the smartphone market in China (in which Xiaomi is the leader) may be nearing saturation point. Shipments fell in China for the first time in six years in the first quarter according to IDC, though it’s not clear whether that was an anomaly or the start of a downwards trend.

However, Lei believes the company’s performance is stellar considering the current market:

“Even with the China smartphone market slowing down, we did a stellar job of posting a 33 percent growth on last year’s numbers”, he said. “It can be said that we outperformed the market and produced an excellent report card”.

The Beijing-based company, which makes Android devices that are cheaper than but arguably as well designed as iPhones, was valued by investors at $45 billion during a cash-raising exercise in December.

It has faced intense competition recently from established first such as Lenovo and Huawei, who are proving they have the chops to compete with Xiaomi on features and price. Looking to expand beyond China, Xiaomi has expanded internationally in recent times, launching new phones in India and Brazil.

SOURCE: Reuters.

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