Apple's iPhone has usurped Nokia to take the crown as leading smartphone brand in China, according to a report published by Morgan Stanley, Sina.com reported Wednesday.

More than a third of consumers express a preference for iPhone, twice that for Nokia's handsets, surveys show.

A surge in iPhone growth in China has already made the country Apple's second largest market globally, the report said. Apple's revenues in China grew from $3 billion in fiscal year 2010 to $13 billion in 2011.

Apple increased its share by 6 percentage points to reach 34 percent of planned purchases, an increase in demand of 4 percent over findings gathered six months ago, a September survey found.

Planned purchases of Nokia phones dropped 8 percent, accounting for 16 percent of China's potential smartphone market, a decrease of 9 percent over the same period.

China's business press carried the story above on Thursday.