IDC: India's third-quarter smartphone shipments fell 10% year-on-year to 43.5 million units

According to a report by market research company IDC, India’s third-quarter smartphone market shipments fell 10% year-on-year to 43.5 million units, the lowest third-quarter shipments since 2019. High inventory accumulation may lead to flat performance in the fourth quarter . IDC predicts that India's smartphone shipments will be about 150 million units in 2022, a year-on-year decrease of 8-9%.

Despite the festive season starting earlier than usual, higher prices dragged down shipments in the world's second-largest smartphone market, IDC said. The average selling price rose by 15% year-on-year and 6% quarter-on-quarter to a record high of US$226 (currently about RMB 1,607).

"Average selling prices have continued to grow for eight consecutive quarters due to rising costs and 5G shipments growing at a moderate premium," said Upasana Joshi, research manager for client devices at IDC. In addition, Navkendar Singh, assistant vice president of device research at IDC, said inventory buildup And post-holiday demand shrinkage will lead to weak performance in the fourth quarter.

IDC expects India's smartphone shipments to be around 150 million units in 2022, down 8-9% from the previous year, and Singh doesn't expect 2023 to be better. The main challenges heading into 2023 are the impact of inflation on consumer demand, rising device costs and the slow migration of feature phones to smartphones.