NEW YORK (AP) — Research firm Gartner says worldwide cellphone sales fell last year, as economic turmoil dampened shopper appetites.

The decline was 1.7 percent, and it was the first time since 2009 that cellphone sales have fallen, Gartner says. Sales amounted to 1.75 billion units, meaning that one out of every four people on the planet bought a new cellphone last year.