SHENZHEN, Sept 19 – If you are in China and hoping to get the impressive Huawei Mate XT tri-fold smartphone at its retail price, you may be disappointed as prices have almost tripled — no thanks to scalpers.

Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported that ahead of its official release tomorrow, a 256GB model is being listed as high up as 60,000 to 70,000 yuan (RM37,000 to RM40,000) compared to Huawei’s retail price of 19,999 yuan (RM13,000).

"The prices at Huaqiangbei are still very unstable,” SCMP quoted Lin Shen, a second-hand smartphone dealer, referring to the world’s biggest electronics wholesale marketplace.

"Most buyers are scalpers looking to profit from resale,” he added.

SCMP reported that more than 6.3 million reservations were made on Huawei’s Vmall platform as of yesterday afternoon, after pre-orders were opened on September 9.

However, the high number of reservations does not guarantee immediate access to the device, as supply remains tight. The phone is only being released in China so far.

It reported that these high prices have emerged as Huawei seeks to overshadow Apple in China’s smartphone market, coinciding with the release of the iPhone 16 series.

Some vendors on Alibaba’s Xianyu marketplace are offering the Mate XT at prices ranging from 30,000 to 100,000 yuan, promising same-day delivery upon release.

In contrast, iPhone 16 models are being sold at a discount, with the 512GB version available for 8,999 yuan on Pinduoduo, 10 per cent lower than its official price.

The launch of the Mate XT follows Huawei’s re-emergence in the 5G premium smartphone market last year with its Mate 60 series and this year with its high-end Pura series phones that have domestically produced semiconductors.

All have been celebrated in China as a triumph over US sanctions that have, since 2019, prevented the company from accessing advanced US chips and other technology.