The global smartphone market is expected to return to growth in the fourth quarter with shipments up 2.4 percent year-on-year, IDC predicts after a stronger-than-expected third quarter. Growth should improve modestly in 2021 to an annual rate of 4.4 percent, driven by promotions on 5G devices and a recovering supply chain, the market researcher expects.
Demand appears to be driven by consumer savings in other areas during the lockdown, such as travel and dining out. This frees up cash for new devices like smartphones, which remain in demand despite the lockdowns and other pandemic-related restrictions. The quarterly growth will come across most developed regions, apart from China, where IDC sees weaker than expected demand for 5G devices, which have come to dominate available phones there.
Across the world, 5G is expected to account for almost 10 percent of global volume in 2020, growing to 29 percent in 2024 as prices for the 5G phones fall. Total smartphone shipments are expected to grow at a CAGR of 1.3 percent over the five-year period, with growth in each of the years.
