Smartphone sales rose nearly 50 per cent year-on-year across the Middle East and North Africa in the three months to September, spurred by falling prices and the rise of Chinese manufacturers, according to data from tech research firm Gartner.
“The difference in price between feature phones and low-cost Android smartphones is reducing further,” said Roberta Cozza, the research director at Gartner.
Global feature phone sales declined 25 per cent in the third quarter.
Global smartphone sales, however, grew 20 per cent, with the top three Chinese manufacturers achieving the fastest growth.
At present, smartphones account for 66 per cent of the total mobile market, while Gartner estimates that smartphones will account for 90 per cent of all phones by 2018.
Samsung continued to lose its market share to Apple and Chinese manufacturers. The Korean firm slipped from 32.1 per cent of the total smartphone sales in the third quarter of 2013 to 24.1 per cent this year. Apple's market share now stands at 12.7 per cent globally – with sales up by more than a quarter year-on-year.
Huawei, Xiaomi and Lenovo, the three largest Chinese manufacturers, sold more than 46 million smartphones in the third quarter – above Apple’s 38.2 million sales, but below’s Samsung’s 73.2 million.
Android cemented its lead as the most-used platform, with 83.1 per cent of smartphones using the operating system, equivalent to 250 million smartphones.
Globally, about 301 million smartphones were sold in the third quarter of this year, up 20.3 per cent from 250.3 million sold in the third quarter of 2013.
Gartner expects annual smartphone sales to total 1.2 billion units.
Gartner said the Chinese brands were likely to make further headway in the Middle East and North Africa.
“Over the holidays, we expect record sales of the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, but we should not underestimate the Chinese vendors and local brands,” said Annette Zimmermann, the research director at Gartner. “Chinese players will continue to look at expanding in overseas emerging markets [including the Middle East].”
business@thenational.ae
Where to buy
Limited-edition art prints of The Sofa Series: Sultani can be acquired from Reem El Mutwalli at www.reemelmutwalli.com
What are the influencer academy modules?
- Mastery of audio-visual content creation.
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- All aspects of post-production.
- Emerging technologies and VFX with AI and CGI.
- Understanding of marketing objectives and audience engagement.
- Tourism industry knowledge.
- Professional ethics.
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
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Timeline
2012-2015
The company offers payments/bribes to win key contracts in the Middle East
May 2017
The UK SFO officially opens investigation into Petrofac’s use of agents, corruption, and potential bribery to secure contracts
September 2021
Petrofac pleads guilty to seven counts of failing to prevent bribery under the UK Bribery Act
October 2021
Court fines Petrofac £77 million for bribery. Former executive receives a two-year suspended sentence
December 2024
Petrofac enters into comprehensive restructuring to strengthen the financial position of the group
May 2025
The High Court of England and Wales approves the company’s restructuring plan
July 2025
The Court of Appeal issues a judgment challenging parts of the restructuring plan
August 2025
Petrofac issues a business update to execute the restructuring and confirms it will appeal the Court of Appeal decision
October 2025
Petrofac loses a major TenneT offshore wind contract worth €13 billion. Holding company files for administration in the UK. Petrofac delisted from the London Stock Exchange
November 2025
180 Petrofac employees laid off in the UAE
The burning issue
The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on
Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins
Read part one: how cars came to the UAE
Terror attacks in Paris, November 13, 2015
- At 9.16pm, three suicide attackers killed one person outside the Atade de France during a foootball match between France and Germany
- At 9.25pm, three attackers opened fire on restaurants and cafes over 20 minutes, killing 39 people
- Shortly after 9.40pm, three other attackers launched a three-hour raid on the Bataclan, in which 1,500 people had gathered to watch a rock concert. In total, 90 people were killed
- Salah Abdeslam, the only survivor of the terrorists, did not directly participate in the attacks, thought to be due to a technical glitch in his suicide vest
- He fled to Belgium and was involved in attacks on Brussels in March 2016. He is serving a life sentence in France
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
