Global Smartphone Market Heading for Weakest Year on Record

The global smartphone market is preparing for its weakest year in history, with the primary cause being an unprecedented shortage of memory chips driven by artificial intelligence. According to the latest analysis from International Data Corporation (IDC), smartphone shipments will decline by 13.9% in 2026. It should be noted that this forecast stood at 12.9% in February, but the situation has deteriorated, and this will now be the sharpest decline in the market's history.

The global crisis in memory chips has triggered serious cost increases throughout the industry, forcing manufacturers to either raise prices or abandon the launch of certain configuration models altogether. The situation is further worsened by the ongoing war between the United States and Iran, which has increased logistics and shipping costs. According to IDC's director Nabila Popal, this pressure is forcing companies to reduce shipments and focus on the premium segment. As a result, the average smartphone price has reached a record high of $550, which is $100 more than last year.

The crisis has dealt the heaviest blow to the Android market, where a 20% annual decline in shipments is being recorded. However, Samsung is still managing to take over the positions of smaller companies and increase its market share at the expense of premium and mid-range series. As for Apple, the company is in a relatively better situation: instead of the expected 8.1% decline, the figure dropped only to 5.2%. Moreover, revenue from Apple's iPhone increased by 20%, which was driven by the iPhone 17 lineup and the Chinese market. However, the company's director, Tim Cook, has warned the public that the shortage of chips and processors will have a negative impact on Apple's profit margins in the future.

Source: Yahoo Finance