(Yicai Global) Jan. 30 -- China’s smartphone shipments fell for the first time in almost a decade last year because of Covid-19 in the country, according to International Data Corporation.

Handset shipments fell 13.2 percent to 286 million units in 2022, IDC said in a report published today. That was the lowest figure since 2013. Shipments rose to 72.9 million in the fourth quarter, down 12.6 percent from the same period of 2021.

Among phone manufacturers, Vivo ranked first with 18.6 percent of the market, followed by Honor with 18.1 percent, while Oppo and Apple both had a 16.8 percent share, the report said, noting that Xiaomi ended fifth on 13.7 percent.

The Chinese smartphone market had already begun to decline even before the impact of Covid-19 due to market saturation, consumers taking longer to replace devices, a lack of product innovation, and disappointing results from the promotion of 5G, according to Nicholas Guo, senior analyst at IDC China.

Some 3.3 million foldable phones were shipped last year, a better-than-expected 118 percent annual gain, IDC’s report said, adding that their market share rose to 1.2 percent from 0.5 percent.

Huawei had the biggest share of the foldable market with 47.4 percent, followed by Samsung’s 16.5 percent and Oppo’s 13.8 percent. Vivo, Honor, and Xiaomi ranked fourth to sixth, respectively.

The outlook for China’s smartphone market still looks stark even after the end of the country’s Covid-19 control measures. An immediate rebound would be hard, and manufacturers are advised to maintain a conservative operating strategy, focus on profit, and avoid aggressive increases in shipments, IDC said.

Editor: Martin Kadiev