India smartphone market will grow more than China, US in 2019: Study

Continuing its rapid growth from the current year, the smartphone market in India is set to grow more than China and the US in the next year.

India will be the sole major smartphone market to grow in 2019 whereas China and the US market are expected to remain flat or further decline, said a research study by Counterpoint and CyberMedia.

India will witness about 7 per cent rise in smartphone shipments to 160 million, from 150 million this year. In 2017, it had witnessed 134 million shipments.

In a year time from 2017 to 2018, the smartphone mark has grown 12 per cent in comparison to the global market, which is expected to witness decline next year.

The market primarily led by aggressive smartphone launches across price-points, discounts and buy-back offer. And this is predicted to continue in next year, added the research.

Online sales by Amazon and Flipkart have also given added impetus to smartphone sales. Online sale events like Flipkart’s Big Billion and Amazon’s Great Indian Sale, promotions and offers drove the market.

Along with due replacement cycle, this will also contribute in an upcoming year.

Smartphone users in India are set to touch 340 million by next year. According to Statista, the number of smartphone users in India is estimated to increase to about 442.5 million in 2022.

Meanwhile, the Chinese smartphone market declined by 8 per cent year on year. According to the industry analyst, the Chinese market has reached an almost saturation point with over 95 per cent smartphone penetration. The US smartphone market showed an annual decline of about 7 per cent.

Apple is leading the US smartphone market with a 39 per cent share in Q3 2018.

When it comes Indian market share by brands, China-based Xiaomi increased its smartphone market share to 27.3 per cent in Q3 2018. In the same period, Samsung India’s market share fell to 22.6 per cent from 23.5 per cent in the last year quarter. Viva also gained good traction and increased to over 10 per cent market share.

Oppo, Nokia, Realme and HMD Global are other players fighting for top slots.

This year, 6-12k smartphone segment witnessed a phenomenal rise in the market. It drove more than half of the market sales.