Counterpoint: smartphone market will shrink in 2026, prices will rise due to RAM shortages

You probably know that RAM prices have skyrocketed in recent months, which will have a major negative impact on smartphones in the coming months. Analyst firm Counterpoint has revised its predictions for 2026 – instead of level shipments, the firm is now forecasting that the global smartphone market will shrink by 2.1%.

The worrying thing is that the punishing rise in memory prices will persist – Counterpoint warns that prices can go up by another 40% through Q2 2026.

Global Smartphone Market Share and YoY Growth by Key OEM, 2026(E)

Currently, the Bill of Materials (BoM, i.e. the…