Latin American smartphone market shipments fell 3 percent in Q1 2022, according to a report from Canalys.
Samsung achieved smartphone market share of 43 percent in Latin America.
Lenovo shipped 5.5 million smartphones for an 18 percent share in Latin America.
Xiaomi shipped 4.3 million units for an 14 percent share in Latin America.
Apple ranked fourth with 5percent share, helped by an improved supply of its iPhone 13 series.
OPPO entered the top five for the first time — with 3 percent share, thanks to its strong performance in Mexico.
Phone vendors such as Honor, Realme, Xiaomi, Transsion and Vivo have expansion plans in the Latin American region, despite global challenges.
“Smartphone vendors are committing to building local presence by investing in new distribution centers and local assembly, opening offline experience stores and making supply agreements with telcos and retailers in new markets,” Canalys Senior Analyst and LATAM Manager Damian Leyva-Cortes said in the report.
Smartphone markets such as Mexico and Colombia have strong telco players in device distribution channels, along with low entry barriers and a good perception of Chinese consumer technology products due to Huawei’s legacy.
Phone vendors will shift strategic priorities toward the Latin American region, which is forecast to see 4 percent growth in smartphone shipments in 2022. Telcos are a dominant regional force in the channel. Emerging phone brands should use telco partnerships to explore as many markets as possible.
