British consumers dump Huawei phones as US-China trade war sparks retail backlash
- Surge reported in number of British consumers trading in devices from Chinese manufacturer, while interest from buyers fizzles
- At least one company has stopped accepting new Huawei trade-ins as it ‘expects the value of these devices to plummet’
British consumers have begun trading in smartphones from Huawei Technologies in growing numbers since the Chinese tech giant was hit by a US supply blacklist.
Trade-in and price-tracking companies report a surge in British consumers trading in devices from the Shenzhen-based manufacturer, while interest from buyers fizzles.
The numbers show that concerns around the company have extended beyond trade talks and corporate procurement and turned into backlash at retail, where Huawei makes most of its sales.
Gadget trade-in website WeBuyTek, which buys and resells about 36,000 handsets a year, has seen a 540 per cent increase in the number of Huawei devices booked this week versus last. That’s the biggest spike it’s ever seen, the company’s director, Paul Walsh, said by email.
‘’We have temporarily stopped accepting any new trade-ins, as we expect the value of these devices to plummet,” he said.
The rush follows the decision by BT Group and Vodafone Group to pull the Huawei Mate 20 X (5G) phone from their launches of fifth-generation wireless products.