Smartphone shipments log weakest quarter in 6 years

India’s smartphone market has recorded its weakest first-quarter performance in six years, with shipments declining 3% year-on-year (YoY) in January–March 2026, as rising handset prices, supply-side cost pressures, subdued consumer demand has weighed on volumes, according to Counterpoint Research.

The report, released by the global market research firm added that nearly one-third of model launches were advanced to Q1 to offset rising component costs, as OEMs tried to mitigate further BOM (Bill of Materials) inflation. This is mainly due to memory prices and currency fluctuations.