【Mobile Phone China News】A few days ago, the panel supply chain market research institute DSCC announced the sales of Samsung folding screen mobile phones. Samsung's foldable smartphones continued to perform well in 2021, with production of 1.47 million units in December, the second-highest on record, up 3435% year-on-year. Among them, the Z Flip 3 accounted for 67% of total sales, with sales of nearly 1 million units.
For the full year of 2021, Samsung's foldable smartphone production increased by nearly 300% to 8.1 million units. South Korea led Samsung's demand with a 32 percent share, followed by Europe at 31 percent and the U.S. at 29 percent. Relative to 2020, Samsung gained a considerable share in the United States in 2021, and demand in Europe also remained strong.
Looking ahead to 2022, DSCC expects demand for Samsung foldable screen phones to rise significantly in the European market, with Europe/ROW models expected to account for 56% of Samsung's foldable smartphone production and more than 50% in the first quarter. Samsung's production in the first quarter of 2022 is expected to increase by 568% year-on-year to more than 1.5 million units, and the Z Flip 3 in particular is still hot selling, accounting for 70% of production. Subsequently, demand is expected to fall by nearly 60% due to the seasonal slowdown.
Samsung is still optimistic about the development of its foldable screen phone in 2022. Supply chain sources said the company raised its foldable panel purchase forecast by more than 15 percent, to more than 18 million panels from its previous target of more than 15 million panels. DSCC predicts that in the third quarter of this year, Samsung will have a more affordable folding phone.