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Despite Best Buy Being Out of Stock of Nearly Everything, Consumer Electronics Sales Were Down in 2020

consumer electronics sales

Like many other sectors, the consumer electronics market has also been affected by the COVID-19 crisis. The surge in global demand for PCs quelled the pandemic’s negative effect on consumer electronics spending, which still slipped to $1.02 trillion in 2020, globally — down from $1.2 trillion in 2019.

According to data presented by StockApps.com, global consumer electronics revenues are expected to grow by 3.6% year-over-year and hit $1.06 trillion in 2021.

Phone Sales to Generate 50% of Consumer Electronics Revenues

The global consumer electronics sector has witnessed a steady growth in recent years, with revenues rising from $844.7 billion in 2012 to $1.2 trillion in 2019, revealed Statista data.

However, with supermarkets and showrooms of leading brands shut down during the COVID-19 lockdown and consumers across the globe prioritizing their spending, the sales of consumer electronics products slipped by $7 billion in 2020. The Statista data show global consumer electronics spending is expected to rise by $36 billion and reach $1.06 trillion in 2021. By 2025, the unified market is forecast to hit a $1.16 trillion value.

Global phone sales, including landline phones, mobile phones and smartphones, are expected to jump by 5.7% YoY and generate $512.1 billion or almost 50% of total revenues in 2021. Despite a surge in demand for PCs due to remote working and distance learning, the computing segment’s revenue is expected to rise by only 1.8% and reach $280 billion this year.

The revenues of the TV, radio and multimedia segment are set to rise by 1.1% year-over-year to $255.4 billion in 2021. TV peripheral devices market follows with $9.4 billion in sales, 8.8% more than a year ago. However, statistics show that the drone market is expected to witness the biggest growth in 2021, with revenues rising by 18% in a year to $3.5 billion.

With millions of consumers shifting from brick-and-mortar stores to online shops, e-commerce became the key driving factor of the consumer electronics market. The Statista survey revealed that online sales is expected to generate 38% of global consumer electronics revenues in 2021, up from 32% before the COVID-19 pandemic.

Analyzed by geography, China represents the world’s largest consumer electronics market, forecast to generate $258.8 billion in revenue in 2021, more than the other three leading markets combined. The country also shows the highest online shopping adoption, with 63% of consumers expected to make consumer electronics purchases in web shops this year.

After falling to $130.2 billion in 2020, the revenues of the U.S. market, as the second-largest consumer electronics market globally, are forecast to rise to $133.5 billion this year.

However, statistics show India is set to witness the biggest growth among the top five markets, with revenues rising by 5.1% YoY to $50.8 billion in 2021. Brazil and Japan follow with, $49 billion and $42.8 billion in revenue, respectively.

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