Computer Shipments Fall Again in Third Quarter--Update
October 11 2016 - 05:53PM
Dow Jones News
By Ezequiel Minaya
Computer shipments again declined in the third quarter, and
though the retreat wasn't as steep as in recent periods, the sector
remained troubled, according to two leading research firms.
International Data Corp. said shipments fell 3.9% world-wide for
the period ended in September, pressured by a 13% slide posted by
Apple Inc. IDC had projected overall shipments to fall 7.1%, the
second straight quarter in which the slide was narrower than
expected.
IDC researchers said the slowing fall in shipments might have
less to do with recovering consumer demand and instead be linked to
companies beefing up inventories as top players in the sector
compete for market share amid the latest wave of consolidation.
"We will need a strong holiday season to ensure that we don't
enter 2017 in a poor inventory situation," said Linn Huang, an IDC
research director.
Gartner Inc. estimated shipments fell 5.7% from the same period
a year ago. The firm said PC makers still faced a number of
challenges, including weak back-to-school demand and continuing low
demand in the consumer market, notably in emerging markets.
"The PC is not a high priority device for the majority of
consumers, so they do not feel the need to upgrade their PCs as
often as they used to, " said Mikako Kitagawa, principal analyst at
Gartner. "Some may never decide to upgrade to a PC again."
Though the latest decline is an improvement from the 9.6%
retreat seen in the first three months, PC shipments have now
fallen eight quarters in row, which Gartner called the "longest
duration of decline in the history of the PC industry."
PC makers have been struggling with declining demand for several
years because of issues that include a shift in consumer spending
to smartphones. IDC's numbers might look better because its figures
include laptops called Chromebooks that run operating software from
Google Inc., while Gartner doesn't.
According to IDC, Lenovo Group Ltd. remained the top vendor in
the world over HP Inc., although its market lead shrank to its
smallest since the company climbed to the lead position in 2013.
IDC said Lenovo held 21.2% of the market, while HP commanded
19.7%.
Gartner also had HP gaining ground on Lenovo, with Lenovo
slipping 2.4% to 20.2% of market share as HP climbed 2.3% to hold
18.8%.
Apple was a leading drag on the global tally, according to both
firms, with IDC saying the company was preparing to "refresh" its
personal computers.
In the U.S., Gartner said total shipments fell 0.3%. IDC said
the U.S. market showed growth in the latest quarter, without
offering a specific figure, but said it maintains a cautious
outlook for the current quarter.
HP remains the top vendor in the U.S., both firms said.
Write to Ezequiel Minaya at ezequiel.minaya@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
October 11, 2016 17:38 ET (21:38 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2016 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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