Apple eclipses rivals as iPhone rakes in 91% of global smartphone profit Apple dominated the global smartphone market during the third quarter of the year, raking in more than 91 per cent […]

Apple dominated the global smartphone market during the third quarter of the year, raking in more than 91 per cent of the sector’s profit despite three consecutive quarters of falling iPhone sales.

The Californian company made $8.5bn (£6.86bn) in operating profit between June and September, eclipsing its nearest rival, Chinese manufacturer Huawei’s $200m (£161m), according to research from Strategy Analytics.

Fellow Chinese companies Vivo and Oppo also made $200 during the quarter, but hold 2.2 per cent of global profits each in comparison to Huawei’s 2.4 per cent.

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While Apple’s iOS software runs on just 12 per cent of the world’s smartphones, the colossal profit is thanks to high mark ups on iPhones and the careful minimisation of factory costs.

Samsung, which remains the world’s largest mobile maker with 19.2 per cent of the global market, saw its profits suffer as a result of the Note 7 debacle earlier this year.

iOS: 12 per cent of global market, 91 per cent of profits Android & others: 88 per cent of global market, 9 per cent of profits

Separate data from analyst Gartner found the company weathered its largest ever sales decline during the same period, after being forced to axe the premium handset following reports of units catching fire due to a battery fault.

No cheap shots

Apple’s focus on high-end, high-cost handsets drove the company to report the largest ever quarterly profit made by a single public corporation ($18.4bn) in January, but sales have since fallen as consumers tend to hold onto their smartphones for longer and upgrade less frequently.

The company’s chief executive Tim Cook dismissed the notion of making a ‘cheap’ iPhone in 2013, saying that while “there’s always a large junk part of the market”, Apple is “not in the junk business,” and that it justifies its higher prices by offering greater value.

It has since released the iPhone SE, an entry-level handset which is more affordable than its flagship models, but still considerably more expensive than many of its Android-running rivals.

The smartphone market’s growth has slowed in recent years, as fewer people buy handsets for the first time.