In early March of this year, compared to the end of December 2022, the average check for smartphones in the Russian Federation increased from 21.5 to 23.5 thousand rubles – an increase of 9.3%, an employee of one of the retailers told Izvestia.
MTS provides similar data. The cost of devices upon purchase in the first two weeks of March amounted to 23 thousand rubles – in December 2022 it was 21 thousand rubles, and in January 2023 – 21.7 thousand, the representative of the operator claims.
Citilink calls more significant figures – this figure has grown by 35% since the beginning of the year. In January and the first half of February, buyers purchased budget devices, and before the holidays on February 23 and March 8 – more expensive ones, the retailer representatives explain the dynamics.
Last year, the average check for smartphones in the Russian Federation, on the contrary, fell – such calculations were previously given by GS Group. Compared to 2021, it decreased by almost 20%, to 19.2 thousand rubles, the company’s analysts calculated.
This is due to the resumption of demand for products of well-known and expensive world brands supplied to the Russian Federation through parallel imports, according to Izvestia’s source in a large retailer.
The increase in the average check for a smartphone is really due to the fact that Russians have again begun to buy more expensive devices, Eldar Murtazin, a leading analyst at Mobile Research Group, agrees.
The growth of the check could also be affected by the fact that since the beginning of this year, Russian customs authorities have begun to actively prevent the import of gray (contraband) smartphones into the country, the importers of which do not pay duties, and the sellers do not pay taxes, Murtazin points out.
In a situation where the supply of cheap, but not guaranteed devices has stopped, buyers are increasingly going to law-abiding sellers whose gadgets are more expensive – this is also one of the reasons for the increase in cost, the expert believes.
