China Is Projected to Overtake the US in Mobile Revenue

More evidence, if any was needed, that the balance of global mobile telecom power continues to tilt away from the West towards Asia.

China will overtake the US to become the world’s largest mobile phone market by revenue for the first time in 2014, according to a report from Strategy Analytics, a Boston, Massachusetts-based research group.

Mobile phone sales in China will rise 15% to 430 million units in 2014 driven by the country’s rapid shift to 3G and 4G smartphones, and generating a 53% surge in trade -- or wholesale -- revenue to $87 billion in 2014, it forecasts. In contrast, mobile phone sales in the US will flat-line at 163 million units, with revenues up just 4% to $60 billion, it adds. In 2013, both countries recorded almost identical revenue at around $57 billion, reflecting a wide difference in performance. Overall, mobile handset revenues are forecast to grow 13% worldwide during 2014.

Major Asian brands, such as Samsung, Huawei and Lenovo, are aggressively expanding their distribution channels and product ranges across the region to meet strong demand from Chinese consumers for more advanced mobile phones, say analysts. The revenue growth is propelled by a decrease in the ultra-low tier market and an increase in other higher-price range segments.