Global smartphone shipments have had the most significant drops in the history of the worldwide smartphone market. Shipments have dropped an estimate of 38 percent in February 2020, and it seems that this is just the beginning.

“February 2020 saw the biggest fall ever in the history of the worldwide smartphone market. Supply and demand of smartphones plunged in China, slumped across Asia, and slowed in the rest of the world. It is a period the smartphone industry will want to forget.”

According to new data shared by Strategy Analytics, smartphone shipments have dropped from 99.2 million units in February 2019 to 2.8 million units in February this year. Smartphone demand has fallen heavily for several reasons. Maybe the most important one has been the coronavirus outbreak. Smartphone factories were also unable to manufacture devices due to Quarantines and travel restrictions. Plus, we also know that several stores have been shutting down to prevent the spread of the disease.

Yiwen Wu, Senior Analyst at Strategy Analytics, added, “Despite tentative signs of recovery in China, we expect global smartphone shipments overall to remain weak throughout March, 2020. The coronavirus scare has spread to Europe, North America and elsewhere, and hundreds of millions of affluent consumers are in lockdown, unable or unwilling to shop for new devices. The smartphone industry will have to work harder than ever to lift sales in the coming weeks, such as online flash sales or generous discounts on bundling with hot products like smartwatches.”

We can expect shipments to increase in March, at least in China, since factories are working again and stores are being reopened. Now, we will have to wait and see how other markets deal with the recent shut down of their stores and other important events.

Source MacRumors

Via Strategy Analytics