Shares of tech giants Apple ( (AAPL) ) and Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) (NASDAQ:GOOG) are trading lower today after investment firm Jefferies reported that iPhones and Android devices are still being heavily discounted in China despite being well past the country’s 6.18 (June 18th) shopping festival. However, the discounts seem to be boosting demand as smartphone volumes in China have grown. In fact, Jefferies estimates that the year-to-date smartphone volume in China is up 3% year-over-year.
Interestingly, Android and Huawei devices are seeing high single-digit growth, while iPhones are experiencing a low double-digit decline during this time frame. However, more recent heavy discounting, especially by PDD (NASDAQ:PDD), has boosted iPhone sales, which has allowed Apple to regain some market share during the past month.
Still, Huawei remains the biggest gainer this year, while OPPO, another Chinese brand, is believed to have lost the most market share.
Which Tech Stock Is the Better Buy?
Wall Street analysts believe that GOOGL stock is the better tech stock to Buy. In fact, they rate it a Strong Buy, while AAPL is only considered a Moderate Buy. Interestingly, professional money managers seem to agree, as GOOGL stock is the only one out of the two with a Positive Hedge Fund Signal.
