19 October 2004 Corporate PC spending has propped up worldwide sales according to the latest analyst figures, with companies phasing out older, redundant units.

Both IDC and Gartner have reported that global PC sales grew in the third quarter of 2004, although they differ on the extent: IDC puts growth at 11.9% year on year, while Gartner reports sales grew 9.7%.

“Companies were refreshing their computers over the quarter. A lot of PCs have reached the point of being so old that companies now need faster and newer machines,” said IDC analyst Roger Kay.

In Europe, Gartner report that PC sales are being propped up sales of entry-level machines and of notebooks.

Both research firms said Dell extended its leadership in the PC arena over close rival Hewlett-Packard. For the past few years, the two companies have been cutting prices and costs to gain market share and have swapped the top spot several times.