Smartphone Sales Tumble as Coronavirus Spreads

Thursday, March 12, 2020 - 08:57 by Graham Miller

Sales of smartphones in China fell by more than 50 per cent last month as the nation took action to stem the spread of coronavirus, according to Forbes.

While the growth of smartphone sales had been levelling off over the course of the past year, this steep decline in activity is directly linked to the disease and the fact that it originated in China itself, which is also the world’s largest manufacturer of mobile technology in its own right.

Concerns about disruption to supply chains for consumer electronics have been voiced by various industry observers in recent weeks, with factories suspending production in some areas and fears of price rises becoming more widespread.

Companies such as Apple are expected to see profits fall because of this trend, and even with the availability of safe shopping online as a means of avoiding exposure to coronavirus on the high street, it seems that this has not been enough to curtail the sales drop.

Insiders believe that the saving grace is that mobile phones are themselves a portal to digital services that will help to prop up the economy in China and other nations, including the UK, while the measures to counteract the virus are in effect.

Many delivery firms have also taken steps to adjust policies so that drivers and customers are not likely to contract coronavirus from one another, with packages being left in a safe place rather than requiring that there is any interaction between people at this time.

Companies in China have been able to keep operating in some cases by investing in preventative measures to keep employees safe, although it really depends on the resources that the individual organisations can muster, which makes temporary closure preferable in some cases and will have a domino effect that is felt in others parts of the world over the course of the year.