Taiwanese PC maker Asustek Computer Inc (華碩) expects to sell 1 million handsets in Brazil this year and double or triple its handset shipments to 3 million units next year on the back of growing demand from the Latin American country, a company executive said yesterday.
“Brazil will become one of the top five markets for Asustek’s smartphones,” Asustek chief executive officer Jerry Shen (沈振來) said at a product launch in Sao Paulo, Brazil, on Thursday.
The PC maker first tapped into the Brazilian smartphone market in October last year with its first-generation ZenFone. The company has sold more than 800,000 units in the nation over the past 10 months, according to Asustek.
During the event, Asustek announced a giveaway of more than 1,000 ZenFone Selfies, its latest model, to all participants as part of the company’s marketing strategy in the region.
This is the first time Asustek has given away more than 1,000 ZenFone models at a product launch, showing the company’s ambition to secure a greater share of the Brazilian market.
Shen said the company aims to become one of the top five smartphone vendors in Brazil next year.
South Korea’s Samsung Electronics Co and LG Electronics Inc command more than 50 percent of the market in Brazil, while Lenovo Group’s Motorola Mobility holds about 7 percent to 8 percent of the market share, Shen said.
Asustek controls about 2 percent to 3 percent of the market, according to the company’s data.
The PC maker has been shifting its focus away from the Chinese smartphone market to other emerging markets over the past few months.
Shen told investors in May that the company aims to sell 8 million smartphones in the Chinese market this year.
However, Shen said that Asustek has prioritized emerging markets, such as India, Indonesia and Brazil, for its smartphone business.
He also said Asustek is working with Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密) to manufacture handsets in Brazil and India.
After selling 8 million handsets in the first half of the year, Asustek expects to ship 6 million units this quarter, a surge of 20 percent from three months earlier.
The company’s annual smartphone shipment target ranges from 17 million to 25 million units for the year, Asustek said.
Asustek shares ended down 2.59 percent to NT$263 in Taipei trading yesterday, better than the TAIEX’s 3.02 percent fall.
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