Recent CIPA sales figures from Japan covering the major photographic brands revealed a slowing in shipments across all camera categories. Over in the US, GoPro has been very transparent about continuing financial difficulties in recent weeks, while itself the subject of rumours, Nikon has had a very quiet 2026 so far.
More positively, however, Canon never holds back when an opportunity to trumpet its success arises – and its latest financial report suggests it has every reason to do so.
Despite largely dismissing rising fixed lens compact camera sales as a passing trend amongst the young, Canon has finally announced it plans to increase production volumes of compact cameras in the second half of this year, with an eye on achieving full year sales growth of 50% in that category. For comparison, official industry figures from CIPA – which include Canon – have put overall fixed lens compact camera shipments up 30% year-on-year.
It’s now feeling confident to do this because the latest financial report for Canon’s Imaging Group reveals that its camera sales have, it states, ‘increased significantly, driven by strong demand for compact cameras, which continued from the first quarter.’
A strong performance in a weak market
Interestingly, this sales and profit boost for Canon hasn’t come at the expense of its interchangeable lens cameras, as the brand also reports revenue increasing in this category. This is led, it believes, by sales of full frame models, specifically the Canon EOS R6 Mark III, launched last November.
But, while sales have grown in comparison with the first quarter of the year, we’re also now seeing a higher average selling price – so it’s not all good news for the consumer. Plus, the cost of both memory and raw materials continues to increase.
With the R6 III having enjoyed ‘strong sales growth’ the first half of 2026, its most recent unveiling in the ‘video first’ EOS R6 V will, it believes, drive revenue growth in the second half of this year, by expanding the sales potential of full frame models.
To accentuate the positive, its current end-of-July report’s revelation of net sales having risen 3.6% – which Canon claims is a record high for the second quarter – and operating profit increasing by a healthy 35.2% to 159.2 billion yen, is not only good news for the brand but the wider photographic industry too.
And it’s not just compact camera sales rocketing. Canon has additionally revealed growth in its network camera businesses and ‘memory related demand’ driving revenue growth in semiconductor lithography equipment.
Wider market uncertainty persists, however, including weak market conditions in Europe, affected by the Middle East crisis, as well as in the US, which Canon bluntly attributes to ‘tariff impact’.
With Canon’s revelation that it is ramping up compact camera production, it will be interesting to see whether identifiably new models join the recent ‘special edition’ of 2019’s Canon PowerShot G7 X Mark III, or if it continues to rely on the popularity of existing units… and for how long. Watch this space!
Related reading:
- Sales of full-frame mirrorless cameras are flatlining, while compact camera sales continue to grow – why?
- Nine out of 10 sales for ‘as new’ cameras in Japan are compact cameras, with the DSLR nowhere to be seen!
- These are the best Canon cameras for photography and video
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