The UAE and Saudi Arabia have the biggest appetite for new devices in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region, with approximately 8 out of 10 smartphone shipments landing in the two countries, the latest data showed.
Mobile phone makers, including Samsung, Apple and Huawei, among others, shipped a total of 5.15 million units to all GCC states during the fourth quarter of 2019, up 6.3 percent compared to the previous quarter, according to International Data Corporation (IDC).
Out of the total number of phones shipped to the region, more than 75 percent landed in the UAE and Saudi Arabia, making the two countries the biggest consumers of smartphones. Total shipments to the UAE also increased by 9.9 percent, while Saudi Arabia posted a 6.7 percent growth.
“Together, these two countries account for more than [three quarters] of the GCC smartphone market,” the global technology research and consulting firm said in a report released on Wednesday.
Demand for smartphones in most parts of the region also increased, with Bahrain posting a 9.6 percent jump in shipments, and Kuwait and Qatar registering a growth of 2.1 percent and 3 percent, respectively.
Oman was the only Gulf market to suffer a decline in demand, with smartphone shipments falling 2.2 percent over the quarter.
According to Akash Balachandran, senior analyst at IDC, the increase in shipments in some of the smaller Gulf markets is a positive sign for the region, “particularly as it comes after long periods of contraction.” “Previously, shipments had been constrained in these markets by the introduction of new levies and taxes, shifting government policies and challenging job conditions brought about by nationalisation programs,” Balachandran added.
Samsung continues to lead the pack during the last quarter of 2019, accounting for 40.6 percent of the devices shipped to the region.
Samsung’s share of the market, however, was down 5.1 percentage points on the previous quarter due to “supply chain shortages in the channel” and “exceptionally strong performance of Apple and Xiaomi.
The American and Chinese brands saw their smartphone shipments to the GGC rise by 22.6 percent and 51.4 percent, respectively during the last quarter.
“Demand for Apple’s newly released iPhone 11 series exceeded all previous market predictions,” said Ramazan Yavuz, senior research manager at IDC.
Yavuz noted that Xiaomi increased its share of the GCC smartphone market to 6.8 percent after the Chinese phone maker expanded its distribution network in the region and the release of its latest products, including the Note 8, enjoyed positive consumer feedback.
The total shipment of Huawei devices to the region posted a 1.7 percent decline over the previous quarter, a huge improvement compared to the 24.3 percent decline in the last quarter of 2018.
“Given the challenges facing Huawei, the vendor performed exceptionally well in Q4 2019,” said Balachandran.
The region has one of the world’s highest mobile phone penetration rates, where around 77 percent of the population on average are mobile subscribers as of mid-2018, according to a report by GSMA Intelligence.