Apple's Share Price Rises More Than 2% and Tops the Global Smartphone Sales Chart in the First Quarter

On Monday, data from Counterpoint Research showed that Apple Inc. (AAPL.US) topped the global smartphone sales chart in the first quarter of this year, thanks to the launch of the iPhone 16e and strong demand in countries such as Japan and India.

Counterpoint expects that due to the uncertain economic situation and the tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump, the smartphone market will decline this year.

 

Trump's capricious tariff policies and the escalation of global trade tensions have led to a gloomier economic outlook and an increased likelihood of rising inflation.

The report points out that the unstable macro-economic environment may cause consumers to postpone mobile phone purchases, disrupt the supply chain, and increase trade risks, thus having a negative impact on the market.

Ankit Malhotra, a senior research analyst at Counterpoint, said, "Based on our current estimates, the tariff announcements have not led to a significant increase in demand due to tariff and policy uncertainties. Since the tariffs were announced in April, they have not affected the demand for iPhones in the first quarter of 2025."

In the first quarter of 2025, the global smartphone market grew by 3%, but Counterpoint expects the overall market to decline this year.

Samsung follows Apple with an 18% market share. Xiaomi has continued its sales growth momentum, vivo ranks fourth, and OPPO ranks fifth.

As of the close of US stocks on that day, Apple's share price rose more than 2%.

Jefferies previously stated that it had upgraded the rating of Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) from "underweight" to "hold" on the grounds that the recent pullback of the stock provided a more favorable entry point. However, at the same time.

 

The brokerage lowered the target price from $202.33 to $167.88 and revised downwards the expected iPhone shipments, revenue, and earnings per share (EPS) by the end of fiscal year 2027 (FY27), reflecting the increased concern about the potential global economic recession and the less robust AI outlook.

Analysts also believe that the hardware required to run larger AI models on smartphones will be commercialized in 2027. Assuming that Apple will be the first smartphone OEM to adopt this technology (iPhone 19), they also point out that the reluctance of companies such as Google and Meta to share data is a more structural challenge.

Goldman Sachs said it would maintain its "buy" rating on Apple with a target price of $294. Goldman Sachs believes that the continuous growth of the service business can effectively hedge against fluctuations in hardware sales, and its high-margin characteristics provide support for valuation; the existing ecosystem of 1.8 billion active devices provides a deterministic user base for the penetration of additional services.

In addition, Dan Ives, an analyst at Wedbush, said that if the iPhone were made in the United States, it might sell for $3,500 each. Laura Martin of Needham also said that Trump's tariff policies would increase Apple's overall costs by about 50%. $AAPL