According to preliminary data from International Data Corporation (IDC) Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker, global smartphone shipments increased 7.8 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) to 289.4 million units in first quarter (Q1) of 2024. While the industry is not completely out of the woods, as macroeconomic challenges remain in many markets, this marks the third consecutive quarter of shipment growth, a strong indicator that a recovery is well underway.
Commenting on the report, Ryan Reith, group vice president, IDC’s Worldwide Mobility and Consumer Device Trackers, said, “As expected, smartphone recovery continues to move forward with market optimism slowly building among top brands. While Apple managed to capture the top spot at the end of 2023, Samsung successfully reasserted itself as leading smartphone provider in Q1. While IDC expects these two companies to maintain their hold on high end of the market, the resurgence of Huawei in China, as well as notable gains from Xiaomi, Transsion, OPPO/OnePlus, and Vivo will likely have both original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) looking for areas to expand and diversify. As recovery progresses, we’re likely to see top companies gain share as smaller brands struggle for positioning.”
Meanwhile, Nabila Popal, research director, IDC’s Worldwide Tracker team, said, “The smartphone market is emerging from turbulence of last two years both stronger and changed. Firstly, we continue to see growth in value and average selling prices (ASPs) as consumers opt for more expensive devices knowing they will hold onto their devices longer. Secondly, there is a shift in power among top five companies, which will likely continue as market players adjust their strategies in a post-recovery world. Xiaomi is coming back strong from large declines experienced over past two years and Transsion is becoming a stable presence in the top five with aggressive growth in international markets. In contrast, while top two players saw negative growth in Q1, it seems Samsung is in a stronger position overall than they were in recent quarters.”
