Apple witnessed a decline in smartphone shipments by 10 percent in the first quarter of this year, due to intense competition from Android smartphone manufacturers competing for the top spot, as per the data from research firm IDC.

From January to March, smartphone shipments grew by 7.8 percent to 289.4 million devices globally, with Samsung leading ahead of Apple over smartphone manufacturers with 20.8 percent market share.

The sharp drop in sales for Apple follows a stellar quarter in which it had surpassed Samsung to become the world’s top smartphone manufacturer. It even came second place with 17.3 percent market share among Chinese companies like Huawei.

Xiaomi, one of China’s top smartphone manufacturers, came third in the first quarter with a 14.1 percent market share.

Having launched its flagship smartphone line Galaxy S24 series starting this year, South Korea's Samsung shipped over 60 million smartphones in this time.

In the first three weeks of their release, sales of Galaxy S24 smartphones worldwide increased by eight percent when compared to the Galaxy S23 series of the previous year, according to data source Counterpoint.

IDC reports that Apple shipped 50.1 million iPhones in the first quarter, compared to 55.4 million units during the same period last year.

The decline highlights the difficulties the American company faces in its third-largest market, where several Chinese businesses and government organizations ban staff access to Apple devices. This practice is similar to American government prohibitions on Chinese software due to security concerns.

The Cupertino, California-based corporation is expected to showcase upgrades to the software that powers iPhones, iPads, and other Apple products at its Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) in June.