Global PC shipments are forecast to drop significantly this year from last year, with further contraction expected next year due to persistent headwinds, research firm International Data Corp (IDC) said on Thursday last week.
Worldwide PC shipments are forecast to decrease 12.8 percent on an annual basis to 305.3 million units this year, due to higher inflationary pressure, a weakening global economy and a higher comparison base last year, IDC said in a research report.
The latest forecast was IDC’s second downward revision this year. The firm in February predicted global PC shipments would drop 1 percent annually to 345 million units this year, and in June cut its forecast to an annual 8.5 percent fall to 321.2 million units.
Photo courtesy of Asustek Computer Inc via CNA
IDC — which categorizes PCs as desktops, notebooks and workstations — said the weakening momentum is to extend into next year, “as consumer demand has slowed, the education demand has been largely fulfilled and enterprise demand gets pushed out due to worsening macroeconomic conditions,” the report said.
The tablet market is also expected to slow this year, and at a much faster pace with a projected 6.8 percent decline, to 156.8 million units, the Massachusetts-based research firm said in the report.
“With economic headwinds gaining speed, we expect worsening consumer sentiment to result in further consumer market contractions over the next six quarters,” IDC research vice president for devices and displays Linn Huang (黃琳) said in a statement.
The combined market for PCs and tablets is forecast to decline 2.6 percent next year before returning to growth in 2024, the report said.
The IDC forecast was echoed by PC vendors HP Inc and Dell Technologies Inc, as both last month reported disappointing sales for last quarter and warned of more shipment declines in the near term.
Acer Inc (宏碁) said it would aggressively reduce inventory, with PC demand expected to remain sluggish throughout the second half of this year as demand for remote working subsides.
However, Asustek Computer Inc (華碩) said it would expand its PC business to digest inventory.
The company said last month that it would cut inventory by NT$25 billion (US$817.31 million) this quarter and another NT$25 billion next quarter after inventory rose 7 percent quarterly and 59 percent annually to NT$206.2 billion last quarter.
Another IDC analyst is optimistic about the outlook for the PC industry, even as the market’s COVID-19 boom ends.
“Although demand is slowing, the outlook for shipments remains above pre-pandemic levels,” IDC mobility and consumer device research manager Jitesh Ubrani said in the statement.
“Long-term demand will be driven by a slow economic recovery combined with an enterprise hardware refresh as support for Windows 10 nears its end,” Ubrani said. “Educational deployments and hybrid work are also expected to become a mainstay, driving additional volumes.”
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