Demand for phones worldwide has decreased 21%, in three years

Shipments of mobile devices on a global scale have decreased by 21% over the past three years.

According to information that was obtained from the International Data Corporation, the number of phones that were shipped all over the world decreased by 22 percent, going from 340 million units in the first quarter of 2021 to 268 million units in the first quarter of 2023.

When compared to the previous quarter, the global shipment was at its highest in 2021, but it dropped to 311.2 million units in 2022, and then it dropped even further to 268 million units in the first quarter of 2023.

When compared to the previous year, the number of mobile phones shipped around the world hit an all-time high of 1.67 billion units in 2021, but only 1.21 billion units were shipped the following year.

Earlier, we had reported that the total number of global smartphone shipments in the first quarter of 2023 came in at 268.6 million units, which was a decrease of 14.6% year-on-year.

As a result of lukewarm demand, inflation, and general economic unpredictability, this was the seventh consecutive quarter in which the smartphone market experienced a decline in revenue.

IDC reported that the decrease was greater than the 12.7 percent that it had predicted it would experience in its previous forecast.

According to a report that was published by the World Economic Forum in 2021, “Some experts think that “peak smartphone” is already behind us, but market research group IDC remained hopeful for the industry to return to previous heights and even surpass them.”

Nabila Popal, the Research Director of the Worldwide Tracker team at IDC, stated that “The industry is going through a period of inventory clearing and adjustment,” despite the fact that there may have been a decrease in the demand for phones all over the world.

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“Market participants continue to exercise caution and are opting to take a conservative approach rather than flooding a channel with additional stock in order to chase after momentary gains in share. If we want to avoid an unhealthy situation like the one that will exist in 2022, I believe that doing this is the prudent thing to do.

“Although we have reason to believe that we will be back on our feet by the end of the year, we still have a difficult three to six months ahead of us. Everyone is tense and worried about the specific time that the tide will turn, and they all want to be the first ones to ride the wave of recovery when it arrives. Nevertheless, it is a difficult circumstance.”

In general, the effects of inflation and market saturation have thrown the global phone shipment market into chaos. This is especially true in light of the fact that projections about a significant economic downturn are becoming more likely.