South Korea's Samsung Electronics maintained its top spot in the share of the global smartphone market in the second quarter, widening its lead over Apple.

According to market researcher Counterpoint Research, Samsung sold 77 million smartphones in the April to June period, up three-point-four percent on-year.

The firm took up 21-point-four percent of the global smartphone market, up one-tenth of a percentage point year-on-year.

Apple sold 40-point-four million smartphones in the April to June period, down 14-point-nine percent from the same period last year, with its global market share shrinking by two-point-four percentage points to eleven-point-two percent.

Chinese brand Huawei came in third selling 32 million units, while another South Korean maker LG Electronics sold 14 million smartphones, posting a global market share of three-point-nine percent.