Apple Only Brand To See Growth in Q3 Even As Global Smartphone Market Declined: Canalys

Apple was the only smartphone company in the top five brands to record positive growth even as the global smartphone market recorded its third consecutive decline this year.

Apple grabbed an 18 per cent share during the market downturn.

Apple was the only smartphone company in the top five brands to record positive growth and improve its market position even as the global smartphone market recorded its third consecutive decline this year, dropping nine per cent year-on-year (YoY), a new report says. This is the worst third quarter (Q3) for the global smartphone market since 2014, said market research firm Canalys.

South Korean tech giant Samsung grabbed the top spot with the largest market share and it was also the biggest contributor to global smartphone shipments in the third quarter of 2022. Samsung retained its leading position with a 22 per cent market share as compared to a 21 per cent market share in Q3, 2021, driven by heavy promotions to reduce channel inventory. The iPhone maker grabbed an 18 per cent share during the market downturn, thanks to relatively resilient demand for iPhones. 

“The smartphone market is highly reactive to consumer demand and vendors are adjusting quickly to the harsh business conditions,” Amber Liu, Analyst at Canalys said in a statement.

“For most vendors, the priority is to reduce the risk of inventory building up given deteriorating demand. Vendors had significant stockpiles going into July, but sell-through gradually improved from September owing to aggressive discounting and promotions. The pricing strategy of new products is cautiously crafted, even for Apple, to avoid significant pushback from consumers who now tend to be very sensitive to any price hike,” added Liu. 

Chinese handset makers Xiaomi, Oppo and Vivo continued to take a cautious approach to overseas expansion given domestic market uncertainty, retaining 14 per cent, 10 per cent and 9 per cent global market shares, respectively.

“As demand shows no signs of improvement moving into Q4 and H1 2023, vendors have to work on a prudent production forecast with the supply chain while working closely with the channel to stabilize market share,” said Sanyam Chaurasia, Analyst at Canalys.