BREAKING..Lenovo overtakes Apple in US personal computer market
Chinese company Lenovo increased profit by 27pc to above $1bn for the first time, overtaking Apple in PC shipments to the US
By Olivia Goldhill
11:14AM BST 21 May 2014
telegraph.co.uk
Chinese technology giant Lenovo saw a 27pc jump in full year profit after overtaking Apple in PC shipments to the US for the first time.
The world’s biggest PC maker increased profit before tax to $1.01bn (£600m) for the year to the end of March, breaking the $1bn mark for the first time.
The company reported a 14pc increase in revenue to $38.7bn (£23bn) and sold 55m PCs during the year, increasing its global market share to 17.7pc.
The increase marks a 5pc year-on-year growth in market share, compared to an overall industry decline of 8pc during the same period.
Lenovo shipments to the United States overtook Apple’s for the first time in the fourth quarter, with the company becoming the third biggest provider of PCs with a market share of 10.8pc.
The fourth quarter also saw Lenovo’s revenue from Europe, the Middle East and Africa overtake revenue from China PC sales for the first time.
Lenovo increased smartphone shipments by 59.4pc in the three months to the end of March, outpacing the worldwide market by 28pc.
The company sold more tablets and smartphones than PCs for each of the four quarters in the 2013/14 financial year.
In total, Lenovo sold 55m PCs, 50m smartphones and 9.2m tablets throughout the year.
Yang Yuanqing, chief executive of the company, said Lenovo aims to increase sales by 69pc to 100m smartphone and tablet sales this coming year.
Lenovo also aims to be the world’s number one tablet PC maker within two years, said Mr Yang.
“The record sales and profits that we delivered last year prove that Lenovo can grow and deliver its commitments, no matter the market conditions”, he said.
“Not only did we strengthen our leading position in PCs, but we gained three points in tablets by quadrupling sales volume and became the fastest growing major smartphone company in the world.
“This demonstrates our capability to manage both businesses that are already mature, as well as those that are shifting to maturity”, added Mr Yang.
Shares for the company closed up 3.4pc at 9.44 Hong Kong dollars (72p) on the Hong Kong stock exchange on Wednesday. |
