...as global smartphone market experienced a fifth consecutive quarter of decline, falling by 12% year-on-year in Q1 2023
The reports, which give a quarterly and yearly update on the global smartphone shipment based on market demand and supply, noted that Samsung was the only leading vendor to achieve a quarter-on-quarter recovery and struggled back to number one with a 22% market share.
Meanwhile, Apple’s counterpart and competitor narrowed the gap after a resurgence brought by the increased demand for its latest product, the iPhone 14. Apple remained in second place with a 21% market share driven by solid demand for its iPhone 14 Pro series in Q1 2023.
Xiaomi held on to and completed the top three position with an 11% market share, helped by new product launches toward the end of the quarter while inventory adjustment continued. OPPO and Vivo strengthened their positions in the Asia Pacific region and their home markets, accounting for 10% and 8% of the market share, respectively.
“The smartphone market’s decline in the first quarter of 2023 was within expectations throughout the industry,”
said Canalys Analyst Sanyam Chaurasia.
Recall that the global smartphone market recorded a drop in total shipments last year, per a report from the International Data Corporation (IDC).
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Smartphone market’s declining demand
Per the report, which provides insightful analysis through quarterly market share data by region, the drop represents the largest-ever decline in a single quarter. It also contributed to a steep 11.3% decline for the year.
That trend has continued into 2023, with smartphone makers Samsung and Xiaomi losing some of their market shares in the first quarter of 2023. According to the report by Canalys, Samsung saw a fall in market share, going from 24% in Q1 2022 to 22% in Q1 2023. In Q1 2023, Xiaomi, which ranks third internationally in smartphone market share, dropped from 13% to 11%.
“The local macroeconomic conditions continued to hinder vendors’ investments and operations in several markets. Despite price cuts and heavy promotions from vendors, consumer demand remained sluggish, particularly in the low-end segment due to high inflation affecting consumer confidence and spending.”
Sanyam Chaurasia, Analyst at Canalys
Additionally, the continuous sluggish end-user demand has triggered a major wave of destocking across the entire supply chain, with channels reducing inventory levels to secure operations. To maintain a low level of sell-in volume, vendors continued to use cautious production techniques, which had a long-term negative impact on the component supply chain’s operational performance”, she added.
Market resurgence expected?
Toby Zhu, a Canalys Analyst, stated that there had been increases in demand for specific smartphone brands and price ranges while noting that there have been some signs of stabilization in the ongoing fall.
The smartphone market is anticipated to experience a greater supply of 5G phones with the global rollout of 5G, which would further generate a pool of inventory. Although it is still unclear, this pool or influx of supply may also result in a price drop for some of these devices or even a further reduction in shipment if the current macroeconomic conditions persist.