DUBAI: Mobile phones are no longer immune to the weakening regional consumer sentiment as the gloomy macroeconomic outlook, reduced government spending and ongoing political instability continue to bite.
The total shipments into the Gulf Cooperation Countries (GCC) are expected to suffer a 7.8 per cent year-on-year decline to 7.66 million units in the second quarter of this year; however, smartphone shipments are expected to increase. The drop in shipments will be due mainly to basic mobile phones.
Nabila Popal, research manager for mobile handsets at research firm International Data Corporation, told Gulf News that the impact is going to come mainly from Saudi Arabia due to its policy of employing only Saudi nationals in its mobile phone stores in the kingdom. The reduction will also come from reduced IT spending in the kingdom.
