The smartphone industry has suffered its largest year-over-year decline ever according to a recent report as it struggles in the midst of the Chinese virus pandemic. The First quarter of 2020 saw a drop of almost 12 percent as compared to the same period in 2019 according to one analyst, while another analyst believes the drop could be as high as nearly 17 percent.

PCMag reports that while many industries are being affected by the Wuhan coronavirus pandemic, the smartphone industry is being hit particularly hard. According to recent research by the firm ID, the smartphone industry has suffered its largest annual decline ever.

Smartphone vendors reportedly shipped 275.8 million phones from January to March, an 11.7 percent decrease from the same period a year ago. Another research firm, Omdia, estimates that the drop was even higher at around 16.8 percent.

Omdia stated: “This plunge impacted all the major smartphone brands, with nine of the top-10 OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) suffering shipment declines compared to the first quarter of 2019.”

Apple, Samsung, Huawei, LG and Motorola reportedly all saw shipments fall by double digits. Omdia stated that the only vendor to experience growth was the Chinese firm Realme due to increased product sales in India.

According to researchers, consumers are holding onto their smartphones longer due to the high prices for new models or lack of new features, meaning that the industry was already having trouble sustaining growth.

China’s smartphone shipments fell by 20.3 percent during the quarter, largely due to the fact that it was ground zero for the Wuhan coronavirus pandemic. “Since China constitutes almost a quarter of worldwide shipments, this had a huge impact on the overall market,” IDC said. “The global dependency on China for its smartphone supply chain also caused major issues as the quarter progressed.”

IDC research director Nabila Popal said in a statement: “As the uncertainties of the lockdowns and total economic impact linger, vendors are reconsidering their outlook for 2020.”

Lucas Nolan is a reporter for Breitbart News covering issues of free speech and online censorship. Follow him on Twitter @LucasNolan or contact via secure email at the address lucasnolan@protonmail.com