Despite the Indian government’s heightened scrutiny of Chinese tech firms, the Chinese smartphone brands are expected to solidify their foothold in the country owing to booming sales in the 5G era, state-run Global Times has reported, citing industry experts.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to officially announce the 5G launch on October 1 and there will be a new wave of sales in the domestic market, dominated by Chinese manufacturers.

“India’s 5G network upgrade will mean a range of opportunities for Chinese mobile phone firms, which have two-thirds of the market, leading to an expected sale of 20 million 5G phones before the year-end,” the report mentioned.

That is equivalent to an additional month of sales for the Chinese phone makers, said Yang Shucheng, secretary general of the India China Mobile Phone Enterprise Association.

According to the report, Chinese smartphones have shown resilience in the market, despite heightened scrutiny of Chinese technology companies by the Indian regulators, “which have caused disruptions and concern among the Chinese businesses”.

“But Chinese smartphone brands’ popularity among the ordinary Indian consumers provides a firm foundation”.

Shipments of smartphones in India reached 36.4 million in the second quarter, with Chinese brands accounting for about 70 per cent, according to data released by Canalys.

“This shows that Indian consumers put importance on phone quality, while not political factors,” said Qian Feng, director of the research department at the National Strategy Institute at Tsinghua University.

“Many Chinese mobile phones are already equipped with 5G functions, and with the launch of 5G service in India, they will be favoured by the Indian consumers,” Feng was quoted as saying.

Earlier reports mentioned that troubled China-based smartphone brands in India are now planning to set up manufacturing plants in countries like Egypt, Indonesia, Bangladesh, and Nigeria.

The report, citing a Chinese executive based in India, claimed that companies will evaluate bilateral ties, market potential, preferential policies, and labour costs to set up manufacturing plants elsewhere.