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Europe boosts global PC sales in Q2

Desktops rebound

PC sales continued to recover in the second quarter as strong sales in Europe and enterprise demand helped to achieve a 15 per cent rise in shipments.

That's according to US-based research firm IDC which said that shipments of PCs worldwide in the April to June period came to 39.7 million units, approximately one-to-two per cent ahead of earlier forecasts. Regional growth of 20 per cent in EMEA, along with better than expected results in Canada and Latin America, contributed to the fifth consecutive quarter of double-digit growth.

"Demand in Europe, supported by the strong euro and aggressive promotions, was the biggest driver of the quarter," said Loren Loverde, director of IDC's Worldwide Quarterly PC Tracker. "Consumer demand and commercial replacements seem fairly steady across the major regions with growth slightly slower than expected in Asia, and faster in Europe, Canada and Latin America. Overall growth remains solid and strength in Europe bodes well for the second half of the year."

There was a shift towards desktop systems in the second quarter, particularly in Europe, as aggressive pricing continued to encourage both the consumer and commercial sectors to upgrade desktops. Laptop growth in Europe, while remaining above 25 per cent, slowed from the first quarter.

Te US market was strong in all areas except federal government. The outlook continues to be positive for the latter half of the year as seasonal buying trends, such as back-to-school and consumer purchasing, emerge.

Growth in the Japanese market was positive in the second quarter, but was down on the first quarter. The continuing weak economy sees the country struggling to improve growth figures.

Sales in China were the driver for growth in the Asia/Pacific region, in spite of a decline in the South Korean market and limited take-up of low-cost PC schemes.

Dell, HP and IBM all had strong growth in the second quarter with Dell maintaining its lead in worldwide shipments with growth of 22.5 per cent from the same period last year. HP and IBM recorded growth of 15.4 and 17.5 per cent, respectively. Portable sales for the top three were consistently strong, IBM, for example, recorded a 30 per cent growth in portables in this quarter.

© ENN

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