China-based vendors Huawei, Oppo, Vivo, Xiaomi and Gionee together are expected to ship a total of 500 million smartphones in 2017, accounting for nearly 90% of China's total smartphone shipments for the year, according to industry sources.

The top vendor Huawei is expected to be able to ramp up its smartphone shipments to 140-150 million units in 2017, buoyed in part by its strong overseas shipments. The vendor shipped 139.3 million units in 2016, up 30.5% from a year earlier, according to IDC.

Powered by their established retail channels, Oppo and Vivo are expected to ship 120 and 100 million units, respectively, in 2017 compared to 99.4 and 77.3 million shipped a year earlier, the sources estimated

Xiaomi shipped over 61 million units in 2016 and will strive to ship 65-70 million units in 2017, while Gionee will look to ship up to 50 million smartphones during the same period.

Thanks to the domestic market structure and strong competitiveness, the leading smartphone players in China are expected to continue enjoying brisk sales over the next 2-3 years, the sources commented.