According to the Korean media, Samsung is expecting to sell only about 260 million smartphones this year. The company had originally planned to manufacture 334 million smartphone units in 2022, with a sales target on 300 million units. But in May, it reduced the target by ten percent to 270 million. This was around a time when the Russia-Ukraine war and the coronavirus lockdowns in China started impacting the supply chains. Reports emerged that Samsung had an unsold inventory of about 50 million smartphones across its distributors and retail channels. That’s a lot more than the usual inventory stock. This was an indication of slowing sales. While the Korean giant continues to lead the market, a global slowdown means its sales are affected as well. With seemingly no improvement in recent months, Samsung has now lowered its shipment target by another ten million. The company sold over 270 million smartphones last year. So it’s staring at a sales volume below the 2021 level. Well, if things worsen, it may even dip below the 2020 level when it sold 250 million smartphones as the world battled an unprecedented health crisis in the form of the coronavirus pandemic. Before the pandemic, Samsung consistently hit the 300 million mark. But that seems a distant reality today.
Samsung still has high hopes from foldables
Samsung recently launched its fourth-gen foldables, the Galaxy Z Fold 4 and the Galaxy Z Flip 4. The company essentially discontinued its much-loved Galaxy Note lineup o give these unconventional smartphones more time in the market. It is expecting the latest models to surpass the sales figures of the Note series. However, foldables aren’t volume drivers. They are still niche devices. The Galaxy Z Fold 4 and Galaxy Z Flip 4 aren’t expected to ship more than 15 million units combined this year. That’s if they remain unaffected by all the troubles the smartphone industry is having to deal with. It’s the Galaxy A and Galaxy M series low-cost devices that drive Samsung’s sales volumes. It now remains to be seen whether these devices help the Korean behemoth achieve its revised smartphone sales target for 2022.
