Sales of smartphones expected to dip in December quarter: Report

• Follow

Indian smartphone shipments is expected to see a fall in the December quarter owing to supply challenges, resulting in annual shipments below 160 million in 2021, according to research firm IDC. The smart phone market had registered a YoY decline of 12% in September 2021 quarter, shipping 48 million units after four consecutive quarters of growth.

The IDC said that much of this happened due to component shortages as well as an unusually high third quarter 2020 comparison base.

It added that as compared to the third quarter of 2019, September 2021 quarter increased by 3% as channels were stocked up for the diwali quarter amid the supply shortages.

OnePlus Nord CE among top selling 5G models

In the smartphone tally, Xiaomi led the race with 23.4%, followed by Samsung at 16.9%, Vivo at 16.4%, Realme at 15.7% and Oppo at 10.7% in the September 2021 quarter.

Online channels recorded a high 52% share, although with a 5% YoY shipment volume decline, and added that offline channels registered an 18% YoY shipment decline.

India was the third-largest 5G smartphone market globally with 7% of worldwide 5G shipments, shipping 10 million units at an ASP (Average Selling Price) of $401 in the September 2021 quarter, according to IDC.

From January to Septmeber 2021, 17 million 5G smartphones were shipped to India and are expected to be under 30 million for 2021.

In the quarter under review, OnePlus Nord CE, iPhone 12, and Galaxy A22 were the most popular 5G models.

IDC said that overall Average Selling Prices (ASPs) peaked at $196, driven by price hikes and a greater 5G contribution. It added that, the sub-$200 segment slipped by 24%, while $200-plus smartphones increased by 56%, signaling a shift to higher price buckets, driven primarily by supply.