Global PC Shipments Decline For First Time Since Recession
2011年4月14日 - 6:49AM
Dow Jones News
Global shipments of personal computers declined for the first
time since the end of the recent recession, as events in the Middle
East and Japan added to nascent business spending and a cautious
consumer, industry tracker International Data Corp. said.
In the first quarter, global PC shipments fell 3.2%, IDC said,
below its projected forecast for 1.5% growth.
The results underscore challenges facing top computer
manufacturers as tablet computers such as Apple Inc.'s (AAPL) iPad
attract the interest of consumers and corporations alike. Equally
sigificant has been the advancement of computer components, which
continue to get faster and more efficient. Those parts have
extended the usable lifetime of a computer and allowed consumers
and businesses to stall what once were essential upgrades.
"The U.S. and world-wide PC market continues to work through a
difficult era that we expect will continue into next quarter, but
will start to improve in the second half of the year," said IDC
analyst Bob O'Donnell.
Demand in the U.S. fell more than 10% from the same time last
year, while shipments to Asian and Pacific regions other than Japan
increased 5.6%, disappointing IDC analysts who had hoped for
stronger growth.
Hewlett-Packard Co. (HPQ) maintained its position as the world's
top computer maker, out-shipping second-place Dell Inc. (DELL) by
roughly 5 million units, though both company's shipments declined
slightly from the same time last year, according to IDC.
H-P's growth was able to outperform most markets, IDC said,
although it did struggle in some Asian countries. By comparison,
Dell made significant strides in emerging markets, but it posted
disappointing shipments in key markets, such as the U.S.
Acer Inc (2353.TW) ranked third as its shipments fell nearly
16%, IDC said. But in the U.S., where Acer fourth behind Apple, the
Taiwanese computer maker's shipments dove more than 42%.
The reason, IDC said, was that the company dove head-first into
making netbooks--tiny no-frills cheap laptops--and hasn't been able
to effectively combat slowing sales with different products. The
company is also focused on consumer products, IDC said, which means
it won't benefit as well from business spending expected to rise
sometime in the second half of the year.
Apple, in the mean time, saw its U.S. shipments rise 9.6% in the
first quarter, netting it 8.5% market share in the U.S. as compared
to 7% the same time last year, IDC said.
-By Ian Sherr, Dow Jones Newswires; 415-439-6455;
ian.sherr@dowjones.com