Canalys: The global smartphone market takes its first steps towards recovery in the third quarter

The smartphone market has been through a rough patch in recent quarters, but the worst may finally be behind us, Canalys reveals in its latest report. The annual decline is only 1% in the third quarter of 2023, although suppliers are expected to remain cautious about the recovery, as geopolitical uncertainties are not over and companies are still readjusting their sales channels and component inventories.

The market leader remained Samsung, followed by Apple. Xiaomi remained the world’s third-largest smartphone maker for the third quarter, while Transsion, owner of the Itel, Infinix and Tecno brands, is now on track to overtake Oppo in global shipments.

Outside of the Top 5, Canalys revealed that Huawei has made a strong comeback in the last three months with the release of the Mate 60 series; It may be limited to China for now, but carriers and retailers have raced to stock up on Huawei phones to meet rising demand.

According to Amber Liu, Xiaomi and Transsion have managed to capitalize on the recovery in emerging markets. These short-term successes could turn into more sustainable long-term success, provided both companies “play their cards right.”

Toby Zhu, an analyst at Canalys, said increases in supply chain costs are expected and that smartphone makers are adapting to the evolving situation. However, the current increase in component orders, combined with reduced supply capacity, could lead to component shortages, which would pose a challenge to planning and production.