PC shipments still growing
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US, Asia-Pac and Latin America push market expansion.
Hot demand for consumer desktops – especially in the US, Asia-Pacific and Latin America – help push up the growth rate of the worldwide PC market in the first quarter, according to research house Gartner.
The total number of PCs shipped – at 57 million – represented a 13.1% increase over the corresponding quarter of 2005. A combination of low prices and promotions fuelled by high inventory levels drove growth of over 20% year-on-year in the emerging markets of Asia-Pacific and Latin America. And in the US renewed price wars stimulated consumer demand.
Globally, Dell remained the market leader, with a share of 16.5%, although a resurgent Hewlett-Packard (HP) is in hot pursuit. While flat US sales kept Dell’s growth at 10.2% – its slowest pace since 2001 – HP’s sales were up 22.3% compared to the year-ago quarter when it had supply problems.
In EMEA, HP, like Acer and Toshiba, reaped the rewards of deals with retailers to promote low-priced notebook PCs. While this tactic guarantees high sales, it does not mean high margins. As Gartner says: “Vendors must now decide whether to challenge for market share or maintain profitability in the region.”
Worldwide PC shipment estimates for 1Q 2006 (thousands)
Source: Gartner
