BEIJING (Reuters) -Sales of foreign-branded mobile phones in China, including those of Apple Inc ( AAPL ), fell 9.7% year-on-year in May, according to data released by a government-affiliated research company on Friday.

Calculations based on the data from the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology (CAICT) showed that May shipments of foreign-branded phones in China fell to 4.54 million handsets from the same month last year.

As the largest foreign mobile phone maker in China's smartphone-dominated market, Apple's ( AAPL ) performance plays a significant role in the overall data on foreign-branded phone sales in the country.

Apple ( AAPL ) has faced increased competition from domestic rivals and has cut prices to stay competitive. Chinese e-commerce platforms offered discounts of up to 2,530 yuan ($351) on Apple's ( AAPL ) latest iPhone 16 models in May.

The CAICT data did not give specific figures for Apple ( AAPL ).

Shipments of phones within China were down 21.8% year-on-year to 23.72 million handsets for the month, the data showed.