According to Gartner, the global sales of mobile phones is expected to surge 11% this year to 1.28 billion units, compared to 1.15 billion in 2007, as reported by IndiaInfoLine. Mobile sales in the first quarter of 2008 stood at 294.3 million units, and are estimated to reach 300-305 million units in the second quarter of this year. The mobile phones sales in the Asia-Pacific region is projected to rise by 17.9% against 2007, while in North America, the sales are anticipated to near 185.7 million units, an increase of 5.3% from last year. Moreover, the sales in Western Europe are projected to total at 188 million units, while in Japan, it will reach 47.7 million units.

The high sales forecast on the global mobile industry for is based on the release of new handsets in the second quarter of 2008; the new wide range of options is luring people towards the market. Besides, the growth of global mobile industry is largely influenced by sales trends in emerging markets due to the fact that developed economies like Western Europe, Japan and North America have already reached saturation.

Also, mobile devices have become an integral part of people’s lifestyle; as a result, their sales have increased. Another important factor that are making mobile phones popular is low tariff rates along with cheap handsets, making mobile services affordable to all.

The global mobile industry is currently growing at a moderate rate, but considering the global economic environment, the industry might come across disputes in the near future. Moreover, some big mobile vendors will face challenges as their market share could decline, and design innovation becomes extremely difficult.

The global mobile industry has leveraged favourable business conditions to grow rapidly in the next few years. Due to high growth in the global mobile industry, several economies will benefit immensely but tough competition may trouble the players, even if they are churning increasing profits from the high growth in the global telecom sector.

Related Market Research Reports:
Global Mobile TV Forecast to 2010
European Mobile Market Scenario to 2012