Apple could sell 15 MILLION more iPhones as stock rockets to highest level since December following rival Samsung's decision to halt sales of the Galaxy Note 7 over fire crisis

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The axing of the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 could help rival company Apple sell an additional 15 million iPhones, according to analysts.

S&P analyst Angelo Zino said he expects a halt in sales of the Note 7 to help drive some Android users over to iOS, increasing Apple's share of the global smartphone market by 1 per cent.

Apple stock jumped 2.3 percent on Monday, reaching a high not seen since December, after Samsung stopped production of its flagship Galaxy Note 7 smartphones following reports of fires in replacement devices.

Fires in the smartphones that were meant to replace devices that had been recalled because of their propensity to explode could be a disaster for Samsung and a massive help to Apple. 

Apple stock has jumped 2.3 percent, reaching a high not seen since December, after arch rival Samsung suspended production of its Galaxy Note 7 following fires in replacement devices.

Apple's stock was up $2.66 at $116.72 in Monday afternoon trading and was the largest contributor to gains on the S&P 500. 

Earlier, Samsung's stock dipped 1.5 percent. 

Mr Zino said Apple could sell an additional 14 million to 15 million units during the September quarter.

'The biggest U.S. carriers have also stopped selling Note 7 phones and will allow customers to replace with a different device,' he said. 'We see a more favorable competitive landscape and higher Android switcher rates for Apple over the next 12-18 months,' he said, Market Watch reported.

The axing of the Note 7 will translate into lost sales of up to 19 million phones, or nearly $17 billion (£14 billion), according to analysts at Credit Suisse.

After the initial recall it was expected Samsung would lose $5 billion ($4 billion) in expected sales and recall costs based on the assumption that the firm would resume global Note 7 sales.

Samsung's ongoing problems suggested the world's largest smartphone maker has failed to fix a problem that has already damaged its brand and threatened to derail a recovery in its mobile business.

Following the reports of fire in replacement devices, Verizon Communications Inc, AT&T Inc and other wireless carriers suspended sales and exchanges of Note 7s.

Best Buy Co Inc will no longer sell the Note 7 and said customers could return their smartphones or exchange them for a different device.

'We believe the Note 7's ongoing issues could help market share shifts for Apple,' Credit Suisse analyst Kulbinder Garcha said in a note to clients on Monday. He estimated that a 5 percent gain in high-end smartphone market share would increase Apple's earnings per share by as much as 7 percent.

Apple's stock has rallied 13 percent since mid-September on optimism about demand for the recently launched iPhone 7.

U.S. safety regulators announced a formal recall last month of Samsung's Galaxy Note 7 smartphone (pictured) after a spate of fires led to injuries and property damage

Shares are up 30 percent from lows hit in May, when fears about weak iPhone demand allowed Google parent Alphabet Inc to briefly eclipse Apple as the world's largest company by market capitalization.

Samsung is the world's largest seller of smartphones by volume, with about 23 percent market share, followed by Apple with 12 percent, according to market research firm IDC.