FWIW - IDC: PC shipments cold in 2002
Gillian Law, IDG News Service\London Bureau
September 09, 2002, 09:10
IDC has slashed its forecasts for the PC market in 2002 and 2003, citing weakening demand in both the business and consumer sectors.
Total worldwide PC shipments are now predicted to reach 135.5 million in 2002, showing growth of just 1.1 percent, and then to grow by 8.4 percent in 2003, IDC said in a statement Monday.
Those figures compare with IDC's June forecast of 4.7 percent growth in 2002 and 11.1 percent in 2003, IDC said.
In the U.S. the forecast is even worse, with 0.5 percent growth predicted for 2002 and 4.2 percent for 2003.
The only sectors still spending on PCs are the public sector and small businesses, IDC said. Consumers and medium-sized to large companies continue to postpone spending, it said. While consumers may begin cautious purchasing later this year, it will be mid-2003 before the business and consumer markets pick up completely, IDC said.
The decline of the stock market has raised the cost of capital, dampening corporate spending. Consumers, meanwhile, are watching the job market cautiously, IDC said.
Asia-Pacific is the one region that has seen growth, with larger markets like China, Australia and India likely to keep the region's growth above 10 percent for 2002, IDC said. |
