Smartphone shipments in the Middle East and Africa (MEA) region fell 11% YoY and 3% QoQ in Q1 2023 to reach the lowest Q1 shipment level since 2016, according to the latest research from Counterpoint’s Market Monitor Service. Much of the prevailing economic woes of the region continued, including high inflation rates, local currency depreciation and weak consumer sentiment. Smartphone OEMs were stuck in low gear as inventory correction, channel efficiency and cost cutting continued to be the main themes in the region.

Despite the gloomy tone, there were early signs of stabilization towards the end of the quarter. For instance, most OEMs saw encouraging sell-out numbers due to the Ramadan and Easter sales promotions.

Most notably, this manifested at the top of the market, where Apple’s iPhone 14 series (particularly the higher-priced Pro and Pro Max models) has proven to be extremely popular. Apple outperformed prevailing market trends. Its YoY shipments were up 35%. Counterpoint's chart below shows that Apple was the only smartphone company to show growth in Q1 2023 in the MEA market.

(Click on Chart to Enlarge)

Senior Analyst Yang Wang said, "Poor consumer demand is likely to remain the main theme for the rest of the year, as consumers postpone upgrades while holding onto their current handsets a little bit longer." For more on this, read the full Counterpoint report.