Telecompaper

Global handset shipments reached 291 million units worldwide in Q3, down 4 percent from 304 million units a year earlier, according to a study by Strategy Analytics. The rate of decline was slower than the previous quarter, as the market edged toward recovery. Samsung shipped 60.2 million handsets worldwide and captured a record 21 percent market share in Q3. Samsung now sits alongside Nokia and Motorola as the only three vendors to have passed the 20 percent threshold during the past decade. LG Electronics shipped 31.6 million handsets worldwide during Q3, for 11 percent market share. The South Korean vendors Samsung and LG captured almost one-third of the entire global handset market between them. The touchscreen handset portfolios and a growing retail presence have been the keys to the companies' success. Apple shipped 7.4 million iPhones worldwide in Q3, for a record 2.5 percent market share. Apple is expanding its distribution networks into all major regions worldwide and this is driving its volume growth. Neil Mawston, director at Strategy Analytics, said that about 300 million handsets are expected to be shipped worldwide in Q4, up 3 percent from 294 million units in the year-earlier quarter. This will mark a return to positive growth, signalling an end to the handset recession after four quarters of decline, according to the researchers.