Global smartphone sales plummeted in the fourth quarter of 2022. Some giant smartphone manufacturers such as Apple and Samsung cannot avoid this problem. So, what causes the drop in smartphone sales?
In a report by research company, IDC, global smartphone shipments plummeted during Q4-2022 or the year-end holiday season. The number of shipments was 300.3 million smartphones and experienced a decrease of 18.3%.
The number of cell phone shipments was recorded at 1.21 billion units last year. This achievement is the lowest total shipment since 2013.
According to IDC, the main causes for the decline in smartphone sales were significantly reduced consumer demand, inflation, and economic uncertainty.
“We’ve never seen deliveries in the holiday quarter any lower than in the previous quarter. However, weak demand and high inventories led to vendors reducing shipments drastically.”
Weakening sales also hit the smartphone giants. In the last quarter, Apple reportedly shipped 72.3 million iPhones. IDC noted that the number decreased by 14.9% even though at the same time the giant from Cupertino, the United States (US) also released the iPhone 14 ahead of the holiday quarter.
At the end of last year, Apple experience difficulties in the supply chain. Namely following the Covid-19 outbreak and worker protests that occurred at the iPhone factory in Zhengzhou China.
Meanwhile, the 2nd place is occupied by the South Korean giant, Samsung. Shipments also fell 15.6% to 58.2 million units.
Throughout the past year, Samsung did not release its flagship smartphone. The Galaxy cellphone manufacturer will only launch the S22 series on February 1.
The 3rd place is occupied by Xiaomi which shipped 33.2 million units and also experienced a 26.3% decrease. Two other names that complete the top five are Oppo and Vivo.
To overcome this, IDC suggests that vendors and brands need to rethink the portfolio of devices they plan to launch in the future.
