UAE mobile phone shipments rise to 1 million in Q3 after the ease in Covid restrictions.
Mobile phone sales in the UAE jumped in the third quarter of 2020, with Chinese company Xiaomi emerging among the top three selling brands, according to global data service provider International Data Corporation (IDC).
Data showed that one million smartphones were shipped into the UAE in Q3 2020 versus 0.94 million in Q2 2020, when the country had implemented lockdowns and travel restrictions in order to contain the Covid-19 pandemic. This was an increase of around 6.4 per cent quarter-on-quarter.
The top 3 selling brands in Q3 of 2020 were Samsung, Xiaomi, and Huawei in the order of unit market share ranking.
“With the opening of retail channels in Q3 2020 after the ease of lockdowns and Covid-19 measures that took place in Q2, the pent-up demand drove the performance of the market upwards in the third quarter. This is coupled with healthy performance of Samsung and Xiaomi, the brands that matched the pent-up demand with a balanced level of price and appropriate feature set,” IDC said in a statement to media.
Q4 looks bright
Data showed that the UAE, the GCC’s second-largest market, saw its share of smartphone shipments increase to 24.1 per cent in the region.
The overall mobile phone market of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region experienced a slight quarter-on-quarter decline of 0.2 per cent in Q3 2020 to a total of 4.97 million units in Q3 2020.
Saudi Arabia accounted for 52.6 per cent of all smartphones shipped within the GCC region in Q3 2020. However, the Kingdom suffered an overall QoQ decline in shipments due to the tripling of VAT, which led to an increase in prices.
Meanwhile, Samsung extended its lead of the GCC smartphone market in Q3 2020, accounting for 44.6 per cent unit share. In terms of value, it ranked second with 30.8 per cent.
“With its large portfolio of models in the entry-level and mid-range price bands, Samsung not only maintained its leading position but also captured share lost by Huawei,” sais Akash Balachandran, a senior research analyst at IDC.
“The demand for low-end smartphones continues to remain strong as customers look for value and the channel remains cautious when it comes to stocking premium and ultra-premium devices.
“Despite the ever-looming possibility of additional lockdowns and spikes in Covid-19 cases, an improvement in the market’s performance is expected toward the end of the year, particularly as countries begin to normalise travel and further positive news of a Covid-19 vaccine is released.
“Brands like Apple and Samsung will also post a strong performance in the upcoming quarters with newly released models in their portfolios. Chinese vendors, focused on driving penetration in the region, will continue their marketing investments, all of which will translate into a well-performing market in the short to mid-term,” he added.
Looking ahead, Ramazan Yavuz, a senior research manager at IDC, said the GCC smartphone market is forecast to see quarter-on-quarter unit growth of 6.5 per cent in Q4 2020. “Q4 has traditionally been a strong quarter for the GCC smartphone market,” he said.
