TrendForce: Smartphone Production Fell to About 289 Million Units for 3Q22

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TrendForce consulting research shows that because smartphone brand manufacturers give priority to reducing channel finished product inventory, they are relatively conservative in their production plans for the third quarter. Superimposed with the impact of the weak global economy, the total global smartphone production in the third quarter was 289 million units, a decrease of 0.9% from the previous quarter and a decrease of 11% from the same period last year.

In the third quarter of 2022, Samsung ranked first with a market share of 22.2%. In response to rising inventory and conservative forecasts for the future market, Samsung began to reduce smartphone production in the second half of the second quarter. Production in the third quarter increased by 3.9% quarter-on-quarter to approximately 64.2 million units. Due to inventory pressure, production is expected to shrink in the fourth quarter. At present, folding-screen mobile phones account for about 1.1% of the overall market share, and Samsung, as the leader in this field, occupies about 90% of the market share of folding-screen mobile phones.

Apple’s mobile phone production increased to 50.8 million units in the third quarter, with a market share of 17.6%. Thanks to Apple’s habit of holding new product launches in the fall, the third and fourth quarters are the sprint period for Apple’s new products, and the output in the fourth quarter is expected to increase.

Xiaomi, OPPO, and VIVO ranked third to fifth in the third quarter. The market share is 13.1%, 11.6%, and 8.5% respectively. Among them, the output of Xiaomi in the third quarter was the same as that in the second quarter, and that of OPPO and VIVO both decreased from the previous quarter. At present, Honor’s market share in China continues to increase, which may threaten the follow-up market share of Xiaomi, OPPO, and VIVO.

TrendForce expects that in the fourth quarter, smartphone manufacturers will continue to aim to reduce existing inventory and accelerate destocking for end-of-year festivals, e-commerce promotions, and other activities. It is estimated that the output of smartphones in the fourth quarter will be 316 million units, an increase of 9.3% compared with the previous quarter. However, compared with the recession in the same period in 2021, the market is not expected to recover until the second quarter of 2023 at the earliest.

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