UPDATE: PC Market Rebounds In 1Q, Underscoring Recovery

Global PC shipments rebounded strongly in the first quarter according to a pair of reports issued Wednesday, highlighting confidence in the ongoing recovery and pointing to the beginning of a long-awaited replacement cycle.

The PC market grew 24.2% year-over-year in the first quarter, according to data from IDC. Separately, Gartner Inc. said the PC market rebounded at a 27.4% clip, exceeding the firm's previous forecast of 22% growth.

Much of the demand was fueled by companies replacing older machines amid expectations the worst of a global economic slowdown is over. Continued adoption of Microsoft Corp.'s (MSFT) new Windows 7 operating system also helped sell computers, many of them to consumers, the firms said.

"These first quarter results indicate that the professional PC market is gradually picking up, driven by PC replacements in mature markets," said Mikako Kitagawa, a principal analyst at Gartner in a statement. "Although the first quarter is not typically a strong quarter for the consumer market, growth in the consumer segment was strong."

Year-on-year growth is likely to slow later in the year, however, according to IDC, which sees PC shipments dropping to an annual rate of 15% for 2010. On the other hand, Gartner sees the gradual trend of PC replacements picking up in the second half of this year and the beginning of 2011.

The two firms agree on the world's top four PC manufacturers, with Hewlett-Packard Co. (HPQ), Dell Inc. (DELL), Acer Inc. (2353.TW) and Lenovo Group Ltd. (LNVGY) leading the pack. But they differ slightly on the fifth slot. IDC puts Toshiba Corp. (6502.TO) in fifth place with 5.8% of the market, while Gartner has Asustek Computer Inc. (2357.TW) in the top five for the first time, tying Toshiba for fifth place. According to Gartner, Asus and Toshiba both have 5.5% of the global market. Asus shipments more than doubled in the quarter, while Toshiba posted 35.8% growth, Gartner said.

H-P posted slower growth than the global average, according to both Gartner and IDC. Still, both data trackers said the Palo Alto, Calif., company was the world's biggest computer maker with close to 20% of the market.

In the U.S. market, Apple Inc. (AAPL) grabbed fifth place according to both IDC and Gartner. But the two firms disagree sharply on Apple's first-quarter growth: Gartner pegs it at 34%, for 8% of the U.S. market, while IDC said that Apple shipments increased just 8.3%, for 6.4% of the market.

-By Jeanette Borzo, Dow Jones Newswires; 415-765-8230; jeanette.borzo@dowjones.com

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