BEIJING, April 23 (Reuters) - Apple's ( AAPL )

smartphone sales declined by 19.1% in the first quarter of 2024,

while rival Huawei's grew by 69.1%, signaling an

increasing threat to the U.S. firm's dominance in the high-end

segment of the world's largest smartphone market.

Apple's ( AAPL ) China smartphone market share fell to 15.7% in the

fist three months of the year from 19.7% in the first quarter of

2023, according to Counterpoint Research.

Huawei's share rose to 15.5% from 9.3%.