[Asia Economy Reporter Joselgina] Following the bloody clashes in the Himalayan border area, anti-China sentiment is rising in India, the world's second-largest smartphone market, leading to expectations that Samsung Electronics will benefit. Analysts predict that Samsung, which had fallen to third place due to the low-price offensive from Chinese manufacturers, will smoothly regain second place.
IT specialized foreign media SamMobile reported on the 2nd (local time), citing Counterpoint Research reports, that Samsung will soon surpass Chinese brand Vivo in the Indian smartphone market to secure the second-largest market share. Based on the first quarter, Samsung's market share in India is 16%, 1 percentage point lower than Vivo's 17%. SamMobile stated, "Samsung will become the winner without doing anything," adding, "It is in a position to emerge as the biggest beneficiary of the rising anti-China sentiment in India."
Some industry insiders even analyze that Samsung began to overtake Vivo from the second quarter. Samsung Electronics has recently accelerated its market share expansion by launching four new mid-to-low-end smartphones in the Indian market within a month, including the Galaxy M01, M11, A31, and A21S. Launching four new products in a single market within a month is considered very unusual. Tarun Pathak, a researcher at Counterpoint Research, said, "We need to secure consumers looking for alternatives to Chinese brands."
After the recent bloody clashes between Chinese and Indian troops in the Himalayan border area, intense anti-China protests have erupted in India, including burning photos of Chinese President Xi Jinping. In particular, following the Indian state-owned telecommunications company's cancellation of contracts with Chinese telecom equipment companies such as Huawei, the Indian government recently issued a ban on 59 Chinese applications, including TikTok and Weibo.
The industry expects that the next target will be Chinese smartphone manufacturers. The Indian smartphone market is virtually dominated by Chinese companies such as Xiaomi, Oppo, Vivo, Realme, and Huawei. As anti-China sentiment intensifies in India, Xiaomi, the market leader, recently covered its store signs with cloths inscribed with 'MADE IN INDIA'. SamMobile commented, "Xiaomi, maintaining a market share in the 30% range, appears relatively comfortable despite the current situation," but also evaluated that "it will be impossible for Chinese manufacturers to maintain their performance in India."
The Indian smartphone market is also an indispensable market for Samsung Electronics. Based on last year, the Indian market size was 153.4 million units, ranking second after China. The growth rate also exceeds 7%. However, Samsung lost its industry-leading position to Xiaomi from 2018 and fell behind Vivo in the fourth quarter of last year.
Counterpoint Research estimated that the Indian smartphone shipment volume will reach 137 million units this year.
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