(Telecompaper) Global smartphone shipments fell for the fourth consecutive quarter in July to September, accelerating to a 6.0 percent year on year decline (1.8% in Q2) according to the latest report from IDC. A total of 355.2 million units shipped in Q3, compared to 377.8 million a year earlier, as the Chinese market posted declining sales for the sixth straight quarter. IDC continued to maintain that the market will return to growth in 2019 but refrained from specifying what that growth will look like.