Despite a 19% decrease in regional shipments and its first quarterly loss, Samsung maintains its market lead in the Middle East as industry-wide declines accelerate in 2026, driven by rising memory costs and geopolitical tensions.
Samsung has kept its lead in the Middle East smartphone market even as the region’s shipments fell sharply in the second quarter of 2026, according to SamMobile. The publication said regional shipments dropped 19% year on year to 10.6 million units, marking the steepest decline in the area since the final quarter of 2025. Industry researchers have linked the downturn to higher device prices driven by surging memory costs and to ongoing geopolitical uncertainty across the region.
Samsung’s own shipments in the Middle East fell 7% in the quarter, but that was still enough to leave it with a 39% market share, SamMobile reported. The company’s position appears to rest on a mix of higher-volume Galaxy A models and the more profitable Galaxy S26 line, allowing it to defend share even in a weaker market. Apple was the main exception to the broader decline, with shipments in the region rising 1% as premium demand and its ecosystem helped it withstand the pressure.
The regional picture fits a wider industry slowdown. IDC has said it expects global smartphone shipments to fall 13.9% in 2026 to 1.09 billion units, which would be the steepest annual contraction on record. Other forecasts cited by market watchers are even more severe, with some analysts warning of a much deeper decline as memory prices continue to rise and squeeze margins across Android and iPhone models alike.
For Samsung, the Middle East result offers some short-term reassurance, but it also underlines the strain now running through the handset business. SamMobile has reported that the company’s smartphone division posted its first quarterly loss in the second quarter of 2026, as higher chip costs weighed on profitability even while premium products remained a strategic priority. The latest regional figures suggest that scale can still protect market share, but not necessarily earnings, in a market where component inflation is reshaping buying behaviour.
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