In the first half of this year, with the recovery of downstream demand and the drive of new technologies such as AI, A-share consumer electronics industry chain enterprises generally reported good performance, and the overall development of the industry improved.
Yuan Shuai, Deputy Secretary General of Zhongguancun Internet of Things Industry Alliance, said in an interview with Securities Daily that the global economy is gradually recovering, consumer confidence is increasing, and it has driven the rebound of market demand. At the same time, technological innovation and product iteration acceleration, especially the application and promotion of emerging technologies such as AI, have injected new vitality into the consumer electronics market. In addition, the implementation of policies such as trade in to boost consumption, as well as the active adjustment of strategies and optimization of supply chain management by enterprises, have jointly promoted the recovery of the industry.
The performance of listed companies in the industrial chain is improving
According to data from Dongfang Wealth Choice Financial Terminal, currently, the semi annual reports of 94 A-share consumer electronics companies have been disclosed, and 73 companies have achieved profitability, accounting for 77.66%; 57 companies achieved a year-on-year increase in net profit.
According to IDC's latest forecast, global smartphone shipments will reach 1.21 billion units in 2024, a 4% increase from 1.16 billion units in 2023. It is expected that by 2028, global smartphone shipments will reach 1.3 billion units. Meanwhile, after experiencing eight consecutive quarters of decline, the consumer electronics market represented by PCs has finally rebounded, achieving two consecutive quarters of growth. In the second quarter of this year, global PC shipments reached 64.9 million units, a year-on-year increase of 3%.
In the first half of this year, the main operating indicators of the consumer electronics industry have significantly improved compared to 2023, with steady increases in the production of key products, and mobile phone products leading the recovery of the domestic consumer electronics market, "said Liang Linjun, Senior Engineer of the Intelligent Technology Department at the Institute of Two Modernizations, China Academy of Information and Communications Technology.
Domestically, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics, China continued to consolidate its position as the world's largest producer of consumer electronics products in the first half of the year, with a mobile phone production of 752 million units, a year-on-year increase of 9.7%, including 563 million units of smartphones, a year-on-year increase of 11.8%. The production of microcomputers reached 157 million units, a year-on-year increase of 1%, and the growth rate turned from negative to positive.
The combination of policies has also injected an accelerator into the recovery of the consumer electronics market, "said Cao Zhe, Chief Investment Officer of Avin Smart.
In August last year, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the Ministry of Finance issued the "Action Plan for Stable Growth of Electronic Information Manufacturing Industry from 2023 to 2024", which made comprehensive and coordinated arrangements around boosting traditional electronic consumption such as mobile phones, computers, and televisions, and strengthening new growth points such as virtual reality and trial listening electronics. This year, with the promotion of large-scale equipment updates and the implementation of the policy of exchanging old for new consumer goods, it is explicitly supported to exchange old for new home appliances such as computers.
The combination of multiple factors has led to the gradual recovery of the consumer electronics market, and the sustained rebound in downstream demand has driven the performance growth of listed companies in the industry chain in the first half of the year, "said Cao Zhe.
The reporter noticed that multiple companies attributed the growth in performance in the first half of the year to the recovery of industry demand, an increase in business orders compared to the same period last year, and revenue growth driving a year-on-year increase in net profit. Feirongda, the industry's net profit growth champion in the first half of the year, stated that the company's main customer business has rebounded, shipments have continued to increase, market share of terminal products such as mobile phones has increased, order volume has increased, and profitability has been enhanced.
AI technology application drives industry development
In addition to the recovery of downstream demand, several companies also mentioned benefiting from the new round of development opportunities brought by AI new technology to the consumer electronics industry. For example, Changying Precision stated that the shipment volume of the smartphone market has steadily increased for three consecutive quarters, and the sales of AI smartphones have grown rapidly, injecting strong momentum into the industry's recovery; Affected by the industry entering an upward cycle and optimistic expectations against the backdrop of the AI wave, in the first half of the year, Lansi Technology's smartphone and computer products achieved a revenue of 24.02 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 48.87%.
With the continuous advancement of technology and the increase in consumer demand, the pace of upgrading consumer electronics products is also accelerating, which will bring more market opportunities for related listed companies. At the same time, the application of AI technology will also bring more added value and competitive advantages to consumer electronics products, thereby promoting the development of the industry Zheng Lei, Chief Economist of Samoyed Cloud Technology Group, said in an interview with Securities Daily.
In this context, several listed companies in the industry chain have stated in their semi annual reports that they are actively investing in research and development, and closely following the industry cycle to increase their efforts in the AI field.
Tuobang Corporation stated that the company has conducted preliminary research on some industrial visual inspection products in the field of AI, and has accumulated relevant technologies for wireless charging transmission and reception.
Pengding Holdings stated that in the first half of 2024, various brands will accelerate the launch of AI terminal products represented by AI mobile phones and AI PCs. The foldable mobile phone market is booming, and a new round of industry innovation cycle is coming. The company has made relevant technological layouts in advance, and is accelerating the expansion of related projects in response to the production capacity demand brought by AI related products.
The person in charge of Wentai Technology stated in an interview with Securities Daily that the company is promoting the application of AI technology in the gaming and entertainment industry through multiple high-performance gaming products. In the second half of the year, the company will seize the industry opportunities brought by artificial intelligence, develop a clear AI Phone and AI PC technology roadmap around the "AI+" strategy, and actively cooperate with customers to popularize artificial intelligence in fields such as mobile phones, tablets, laptops, IoT, and automotive electronics.
