Samsung cutting its phone production in China

Samsung is reducing the output of its only smartphone factory in Huizhou, China, less than 12 months after closing its other plant in Tianjin. According to Reuters, the reason is that market share has shrunk from over 20% to less than 1% in the span of five years while being squeezed by domestic players.

Although sales of Samsung smartphones have been less than impressive in the past few years, Q1 2019 brought a 40% sequential increase in number of units sold. Still, either that not enough or Samsung believes it can still make enough units after the cuts.

The financial magazine Caixin said that Samsung has already started offering voluntary redundancy to its employees in Huizhou.

A spokesman in China told Reuters there would be “some adjustment to production volume and staff”, even if Chinese media MyDrivers quoted a factory official, saying the manufacturing is operating normally. He did not state whether the factory will shut down in September, as some local sources suggested.

Aside from the plants in China, Samsung is also manufacturing devices in Vietnam and India, with the output reaching respectively 240 million and 67 million units, with plans the factory in Uttar Pradesh to reach 120 million by 2021.

Source 1 • Source 2 (in Chinese)