TMCnet News
PC shipments continue to grow in EMEA: IDC [ITP.net (United Arab Emirates)](ITP.net (United Arab Emirates) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) PC shipments in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) reached 23.7m units in the third quarter of 2014, a 10.4% increase year on year and a clear return to growth for two consecutive quarters after a difficult 2013 according to IDC. Specifically the Middle East and Africa (MEA) region saw a 2.1% increase of shipments but on the whole total EMEA shipments confirms the rebound in the market but volumes remain below those shipped in previous strong years. "The rebound is clear and consumers' renewed interest in portable PCs is encouraging," said Chrystelle Labesque, research manager, IDC EMEA Personal Computing. "Even if the differences between Western Europe and CEMA [Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Africa] persist for obvious political and economic reasons, there are some common drivers, especially on the consumer side. Inventory levels appear higher overall in the supply chain but, in line with higher expectations after a good back-to-school period, retailers and etailers are more confident about the holiday season business. In Western Europe renewals in enterprise were also further supporting the market." During the quarter, consumer demand heavily contributed to an overall increase in portable PC shipments, which posted growth of 13.5%, supported by back-to-school shipments and preparations for the Christmas season as well as attractive price offerings of notebooks with Windows 8.1+ Bing. The top three players in EMEA accounted for more than 50% of volume: HP posted 16.8% growth, gaining more than 1% share; Lenovo had a share increase of 4.5%; and Acer posted solid growth of 37% and benefited from a favourable year-on-year comparison. "The Eastern part of the CEE region remains constrained and for the seventh consecutive quarter the PC market reported a double-digit decline," said Nikolina Jurisic, product manager, IDC CEMA. "Public projects in the pipeline have been put on hold, while exchange rate fluctuations and uncertainty over the economic rebound are contributing to the decline in the commercial space. In addition, consumer demand also remains weak. Unexpectedly, the Middle East and Africa region reported limited growth of 2.1% year on year, and the PC market only remained afloat thanks to the large education deals in Pakistan. By excluding the PC deals in Pakistan, the region would have reported a single-digit PC market contraction due to the ongoing political instability and economic uncertainly in the region." (c) 2014 ITP Business Publishing Ltd. All Rights Reserved. Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (Syndigate.info). |