Global PC demand set to decrease in 2012: Gartner

After two quarters of positive growth, worldwide PC shipments totalled 92.2 million units in the fourth quarter of 2011, a 1.4 per cent decline from the same quarter last year, according to Gartner, an information technology research and advisory firm. Hard-disk drive (HDD) shortages triggered by the October 2011 floods in Thailand had an impact on fourth-quarter PC shipments and prices. However, Gartner analysts said a major impact will be felt, and this is expected to materialise in the first half of 2012, and potentially continue through 2012. These shortages will temporarily lower shipment growth during 2012.

"Continuously low PC demand resulted in weak holiday shipments," said Mikako Kitagawa, principal analyst at Gartner. "While economic uncertainty in Western Europe had an effect on shipments, expectations of a healthier economic outlook in North America could not stimulate demand. Healthy professional PC market and growth in emerging markets could not compensate for the weaknesses in mature markets, with overall growth still negative."

In Asia-Pacific, shipments reached 30.4 million units, an 8.5 per cent increase from the fourth quarter of 2010. The market performance, however, was below Gartner's anticipated growth of 10.6 per cent. Its findings show weaker shipment growth in China, India and Thailand. Analysts underlined that emerging markets grew steadily, driven primarily by low initial PC penetration.

Globally, HP retained the leading spot in the fourth quarter, despite a shipment decline of 16.2 per cent year-over-year. HP also had to battle against aggressive pricing from competitors and deal with weak demand in the holiday season.

Lenovo, which experienced the strongest growth among the top five vendors, with shipments growing 23 per cent in the fourth quarter, retained its position as the second vendor in global shipments. Gartner noted that while the consumer market remained a weak point, vendors like Dell enjoyed stable growth in the professional sector, driven by upgrades to Windows 7. Asia-Pacific continued to be the major market for Dell, as it achieved 30 per cent growth here.