Global smartphone sales decline 10% in May

Global smartphone sales saw a decline of close to 10% year-on-year (YoY) in May, and dipped below 100 million units for only the second time in a decade, as myriad factors continue to affect the market. According to a June 30 report by Counterpoint’s Market Pulse research service, the month of May also marked the 11th consecutive period when smartphone sales around the world saw an annual decline.

Counterpoint’s data said that phone sales around the world dropped to 96 million in May this year, and marked the second consecutive year month-on-month (MoM) decline in phone sales around the world. The market research firm noted that as the global chip shortage continues to ease up, other factors such as rising inflation rates, uncertainty in Europe due to the Russia-Ukraine conflict, and an economic slowdown in China affecting its domestic market are pulling the numbers down.

This slowdown in sales, noted Counterpoint, could lead to increased inventories with sellers, in typically fast-moving markets such as India. In turn, this would cause a slowdown in shipments, as sellers would look to clear out existing inventory before shipping new consignments.

Earlier this year, market reports noted that smartphone shipments in India did see a decline, driven by a drop in demand for phones as well as the global supply crisis. In May this year, experts told Mint that rising device prices, paired with a lack of attractive deals and discounts that the market has long been used to, led to Indian smartphone users prolonging their product upgrade cycles.

While Indians upgraded their phones every six months in 2016, the upgrade cycle today stands at around 24 months.

Tarun Pathak, research director at Counterpoint, said that factors such as inflation and the lack of innovation in smartphones are causing users around the world to put off their phone purchases until the festive season towards the end of the year — since buying smartphones are no longer deemed necessary, and is instead being termed ‘discretionary’.