Global smartphone shipments fell by 11.7 percent year-on-year in Q1 2020 to 275.8 million units, according to IDC. This largest ever year-on-year decline was due to the Covid-19 crisis.
The largest regional decline was in China, where shipments were down 20.3 percent in Q1 2020 compared to the year-earlier quarter. With China accounting for almost one quarter of global shipments, this had a massive impact on overall shipments. The US and Western Europe saw shipments fall by 16.1 percent and 18.3 percent respectively in Q1.
Samsung shipped 58.3 million smartphones worldwide in Q1, down 18.9 percent from Q1 2019, to maintain its No 1 position with a 21.1 percent share. Huawei retained the No 2 spot with a 17.8 percent share, despite its shipments falling 17.1 percent year-on-year to 49 million units. Apple shipped 36.7 million iPhones in Q1, down 0.4 percent from Q1 2019, for a 13.3 percent share in 3rd place. Xiaomi saw its global market share surpass 10 percent (10.7%) for the first time in Q1, with year-on-year shipment growth of 6.1 percent to 29.5 million units.
