(Economic Observer) The mobile phone market continues to decline, will it be fine in 2023?
China News Agency, Beijing, February 18 (Reporter Liu Yuying) According to data from major research institutions, in 2022, regardless of the Chinese market or the global market, mobile phone shipments will continue to decline.
Whether we can usher in a turning point in 2023 still faces great challenges.
According to data released by the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology this week, in 2022, the total mobile phone shipments in China's domestic market totaled 272 million units, a year-on-year decrease of 22.6%.
Among them, 5G mobile phone shipments were 214 million units, a year-on-year decrease of 19.6%.
The previous quarterly tracking report of the International Data Corporation (IDC) also showed that in 2022, China's smartphone market will ship about 286 million units, a year-on-year decrease of 13.2%, the largest decline in history.
China is the world's major mobile phone producer, exporter and consumer.
According to the 2022 operation of the electronic information manufacturing industry announced by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology of China, China's mobile phone production will be 1.56 billion units in 2022, a year-on-year decrease of 6.2%.
Among them, the output of smartphones was 1.17 billion units, a year-on-year decrease of 8%.
The same trend is the same globally. According to IDC data, global smartphone shipments in 2022 will be 1.21 billion units, a year-on-year decrease of 11%, the lowest level since 2013.
In particular, only 300 million units were shipped from October to December, a decrease of 18%, the largest single-quarter decline.
Due to the sluggish market, Apple began price reduction promotions in early February, and all versions of the iPhone 14 Pro series offered a discount of 700 yuan.
This wave of price cuts has also put pressure on other manufacturers.
Inventory pressure is one of the main difficulties faced by mobile phone manufacturers.
TF International analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said that almost all Android brands face high inventory risks due to weak demand.
Taking Samsung as an example, the brand's global mobile phone inventory (the sum of terminals and components) is not expected to drop to a reasonable position until June.
All mobile phone manufacturers are trying to find ways to stimulate consumers to buy through innovation and upgrading new products, thereby driving the increase in mobile phone sales.
From 2021 to the present, Chinese mobile phone manufacturers have ushered in a wave of self-developed dedicated chips.
OPPO self-developed video NPU Mariana MariSilicon X and audio SoC chips, transforming to differentiated and high-end products under the competition of homogeneous mobile phones.
Folding screen mobile phones are another new track for manufacturers to break through.
According to IDC data, in 2022, China's folding screen market will ship nearly 3.3 million units, a year-on-year increase of 118%, which is much higher than expected.
Huawei, OPPO, vivo, Honor and other brands have launched new folding screen mobile phones.
Regarding the trend of the mobile phone market in 2023, the market is still cautiously optimistic.
Zhong Xinlong, an analyst at the Future Industry Research Center of CCID Think Tank, believes that the mobile phone market mainly benefits from the macroeconomic situation. With the overall improvement of the Chinese economy, the mobile phone market will inevitably be driven.
However, it is still difficult to restore the grand occasion of high increment.
Zhong Xinlong is optimistic about the promotion of folding screen mobile phones to the entire mobile phone market.
First, due to the relatively cold overall market in the past year, the sales data of folding screen mobile phones is still optimistic against the trend; second, the technology of the folding screen related industry chain is still being optimized, and the technology of hinges and screens is constantly improving. This year there will be more Folding screens with high-quality solutions are released, which are more attractive to high-end consumers.
Li Jie, president of OnePlus China, said that the market response to the Ace2 released in February exceeded expectations, and it is now out of stock.
For the market in 2023, there will be no particularly large fluctuations in demand in the short term, and it is difficult for the market to see a significant reversal in shipments.
Some research institutions also believe that the mobile phone market will continue to be at the bottom.
Gartner estimates that global smartphone shipments in 2023 will be 1.23 billion units, lower than the 1.28 billion units in 2022, a year-on-year decrease of 4%.
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