Counterpoint Research, a global industry analysis firm on Friday said in a report that the global smartphone market wholesale average selling price increased 10% year-over-year (YoY) in the second quarter of 2020. The firm said that the average selling price increased despite the shipments declining 23% YoY in the same time period. Further, Counterpoint Research said that the smartphone industry revenues declined by 15% YoY during the second quarter of 2020. The average selling price is said to have increased across all regions except for Latin America.
Average Selling Price of smartphones in Asia Pacific Region at US$243
Counterpoint Research highlighted that the smartphone wholesale average selling price in Latin America dipped to US$166, representing an 5% YoY decline.
The smartphone average selling price in the Asia Pacific region excluding China is said to have hit US$243, representing an 11% YoY increase. Similarly, the firm highlighted that the smartphone wholesale average selling price in the Middle East and Africa increased 3% YoY to hit US$164.
“There are several reasons for this increase,” Counterpoint Research said in its report. “While the COVID-19 pandemic had its effect on the overall smartphone market, the premium segment was much resilient, declining at a modest 8% YoY during the quarter as compared to the highest ever global smartphone market decline.”
In North America and China, the smartphone wholesale average selling price is said to have hit US$471 and US$ 310 respectively. Counterpoint Research highlighted that the average selling price in North America and China represented an 7% and 13% YoY increase.
“There was also an increased dependency on mobile phones during the lockdown, with work from home, study at home, productivity applications, gaming, entertainment and other content consumption happening through mobile phones in varying degrees,” CounterPoint Research said in its report. “This also propelled some consumers to upgrade their devices for a better overall user experience.”
The firm highlighted that the smartphone wholesale average selling price in Europe witnessed a 1% YoY increase to hit US$291.
Demand for Lower Price Tier Models “Severely Impacted”
Counterpoint Research said that the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the potential user base of the premium segment was less as compared to the user base of other segments. The firm highlighted the shipments for Apple increased 3% YoY while the iPhone revenues increased 2% YoY even as the shipments of other OEMs declined in the second quarter of 2020.
“On the flip side, the demand for lower price tier models was severely impacted,” Counterpoint Research said in its report. “Entry-level devices are usually bought offline, and most of the global markets were in some stages of lockdown during Q2 2020. Consumer sentiment was also low, with users in the low-middle class avoiding discretionary purchases.”
The firm also said that the increase in 5G smartphone shipments also accounted for an increase in smartphone wholesale average selling price. It was said that the 5G smartphones represented 10% of the total global handset shipments but accounted for 20% of the handset revenue during the second quarter of 2020.
China was said to be the largest contributor to 5G sales with the country accounting for 72% of the global 5G handset revenues. Counterpoint Research said that the smartphone average selling price in China recorded a 12% YoY growth with the country accounting for 34% of the global smartphone revenue.
“This was also because while all the other major economies were still suffering from the severe impact of COVID-19, China was already on the path to recovery,” Counterpoint Research said.
Crucially, Apple is said to have led the global smartphone shipment revenue table with the company capturing 34% of the revenues followed by Huawei and Samsung at 20% and 17% respectively.
“This was the first time that Huawei surpassed Samsung both in terms of shipments as well as revenue,” Counterpoint Research said in its report. “This was because of Huawei’s continued push in China, the first country to recover from COVID-19. But as markets outside China recover, it will be difficult for Huawei to maintain this lead in coming quarters.”
Counterpoint Research also said that Apple captured around 59% of the global smartphone industry profit in the second quarter of 2020.
