By Kate Yuan

(JW Insights) Aug 7 -- China's Transsion Holdings (传音控股), which makes handsets under brands Tecno, Itel, and Infinix, logged double-digit growth in sales in the second quarter, becoming the fifth-biggest phonemaker in the world for the first time, Yicai Global reported on August 4.

Transsion’s sales rose by 31 percent to 24.8 million units in the three-month period from a year ago, according to a report by TechInsights. The Shenzhen-based company  focuses on the markets of Africa, the Middle East, Asia, as well as Central and Latin America. It was the only supplier to achieve double-digit growth during the quarter.

The company posted half-year earnings forecast on July 26. Its revenue is expected to reach RMB25.029 billion($3.48 billion) in the first half of 2023, up 8.31% over the previous year. The estimated revenue for the second quarter is RMB15.756 billion ($2.191 billion), surging 30.72% from a year earlier.

Transsion stated that with the improvement of overall economic environment of emerging markets, the company has been continuously expanding its presence and upgrading products.

The global leader is Samsung Electronics, followed by Apple. Their shipments both declined in Q2. China's Xiaomi came in third. Oppo, the maker of OnePlus phones, accounted for 10 percent of the global market.

Global shipments of smartphones declined by 8 percent to 269 million units in Q2 from a year earlier, the eighth consecutive quarter of falling. However, the pace of sliding has slowed from double-digit declines in the past two quarters, which could mean that the trend could turn into growth in the second half, said the Yicai Global report.