As Apple faces an Indonesian ban, Chinese smartphone maker Honor is stepping in

BEIJING – Huawei spinoff Honor announced on Tuesday that it will start selling smartphones in Indonesia by the end of March, becoming the latest Chinese company to enter the market. Apple has banned the iPhone 16 exceeding local production requirements.

Indonesia requires that for smartphones sold in the country, 40% of their components must be domestically produced. The rule prevented Apple from selling its newest phone in the market it was said to be in negotiating dollar investment.

Honor has an office in Indonesia and is working with a local manufacturing partner, Justin Li, president of the Chinese company’s South Pacific operations, told reporters last week. He said the foldable phone will be among Honor’s first set of products to be sold locally — 10 products in the mid- and high-end segment.

The company plans to launch about 30 products from phones to tablets in Indonesia by the end of the year. The Southeast Asian country is home to the world It is the fourth largest country in terms of populationBehind the United States of America.

“Although 80% of the market is dominated by sub-$200 devices, Indonesia, Southeast Asia’s largest and fastest growing economy, offers great potential for long-term growth,” Canalys analyst Chiew Le Xuan said in an email.

“Indonesia is emerging as a key market in Southeast Asia with rapid economic growth and an expanding middle class,” Chiew said, noting that the country accounts for 35% of smartphone shipments in the region and could serve as a strategic regional hub.

As of November, Oppo, Xiaomi and Transsion – all based in China – took the top three spots in Indonesia for smartphone shipments. According to Canalys. In November, Shenzhen-based Oppo held its own Global launch of the flagship Find X8 phone The company also has a factory in Indonesia.

Samsung ranked fourth in Indonesia with a 16% share, tied with fellow Chinese brand Vivo, according to Canalys data.

Except for China and Japan, It accounts for just under 8% of Apple’s sales It comes from Asia-Pacific.

Lee claimed that the decision to enter Indonesia was not dependent on Apple’s presence in the country and was confident in Honor’s competitive ability. He said Honor had been eyeing the Indonesian market for years before doubling down on its expansion efforts in the past half year.

While declining to share the current allocation of Indonesian to Chinese workers, Li said Honor is still hiring in the country and aims to have mostly local staff in the future.

In addition to local retail, Honor plans to open at least 10 of its own stores in Indonesia this year, Lee said.

Outside of China, Honor is mainly sold in Europe and parts of Southeast Asia. Its phones are not sold directly in the US. The company claimed that more than half of its sales in December came from outside China for the first time.

Honor, that is plans to go publicIn November 2020, it split from Chinese telecom giant Huawei after the parent company was hit by US sanctions. Huawei said it did not catch anything Shares in Honor or participate in business decisions.