The global smartphone market continues to pay the consequences of the pandemic.
After two consecutive quarters with a drop of around 20%, device sales have begun to show the first signs of recovery from July to September, but the numbers continue to be weak compared to last year.
According to Gartner analysts, in fact, in the third quarter 366 million smartphones were sold, equal to a decrease of 5.7% on an annual basis.
Among the companies, researchers report the leap forward of Xiaomi, which overtakes Apple and conquers the third position in the standings.
On the other hand, Huawei is suffering the most marked contraction, continuing to serve US sanctions.
Samsung remains on the first step of the podium.
The South Korean company in the third quarter sold 80.8 million smartphones, equal to + 2.2%.
Second is confirmed Huawei, but the Shenzhen giant records a decline of 21.3% to 51.8 million smartphones compared to 65.8 million sold in the third quarter of 2019.
In third place comes Xiaomi, with a growth of 34.9% to 44.4 million units.
The Chinese firm, Gartner notes, is gaining from Huawei's loss of ground.
Apple slips off the podium with 40.6 million iPhones sold, 0.6% less than a year ago.
The decline, the researchers note, is however attributable to the delay in the launch of the new iPhone by comparison with 2019. Fifth is Oppo with 29.9 million smartphones, down 2.3%.