According to the latest research from Strategy Analytics, global smartphone shipments fell 17 percent annually to reach 275 million units in the first quarter of 2020. This is the smartphone industry’s worst quarterly performance of all time. Samsung maintained first position with 21 percent global smartphone marketshare, Huawei held steady at 18 percent, while Apple nudged up to 14 percent share in third spot.

Global smartphone shipments fell 17 percent annually from 330.4 million units in Q1 2019 to 274.8 million in Q1 2020. As expected, the global smartphone market delivered its worst performance since records began. Demand for smartphones slammed to a halt in the quarter, as the Covid-19 virus scare shut down major economies like China and shoppers placed their spending plans on hold.

Samsung shipped 58.3 million smartphones worldwide in Q1 2020, slumping 19 percent annually from 71.8 million units in Q1 2019. This was Samsung’s lowest quarterly smartphone shipments for eight years. Despite a strong lineup of A, S and Note series models, Samsung was unable to escape the virus-led plunge in smartphone demand. Samsung’s global marketshare is holding steady at over 21 percent, and it remains the world’s top smartphone brand. Huawei followed in second place, with 48.5 million smartphones shipped worldwide during Q1 2020, slipping 18 percent from 59.1 million a year ago. Despite US-China trade wars and the Covid-19 virus scare, Huawei was able to maintain its global smartphone share at a respectable 18 percent during the quarter. China remains Huawei’s core region and most of its sales take place there.

Apple iPhone shipments fell a better-than-expected 9 percent annually from 43.1 million units worldwide in Q1 2019 to 39.2 million in Q1 2020. Apple’s global smartphone marketshare has risen from 13 percent to 14 percent in the past year. Apple’s new iPhone SE model with lower pricing and larger presence in emerging markets like India will give volumes a further bump in the coming months.

Xiaomi maintained fourth place, capturing a record 10 percent global smartphone marketshare in Q1 2020, leaping from 8 percent a year ago. Xiaomi is dominating the huge India market at the moment and this is giving the company a big boost in smartphone shipments. OPPO maintained fifth position with 8 percent global smartphone marketshare during the quarter, holding steady from 8 percent share a year ago. OPPO continues to expand into Western Europe and elsewhere, with high-profile models like the Reno 3 5G. However, OPPO has stepped back somewhat from the US smartphone market in recent months, and that region remains a key gap in its portfolio strategy.

Exhibit 1: Global Smartphone Vendor Shipments and Marketshare in Q1 2020  [1]

[1] Numbers are rounded.