Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Technology Stocks : Amazon.com, Inc. (AMZN) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Sarmad Y. Hermiz who wrote (123904)	4/20/2001 12:16:22 PM
From: GST	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 164684

I just thought Manu was due -- but as of today I think I would put fresh money into itwo. Good market today -- I am getting longer on this "dip". Time to keep on buying the broader market.

To: Sarmad Y. Hermiz who wrote (123904)	4/20/2001 6:14:58 PM
From: Skeeter Bug	Respond to of 164684

PC Market Suffers Mid-Life Crisis By Mary Mosquera Friday, April 20, 2001, 3:06 PM ET. The U.S. personal computer industry contracted 3.5 percent in the first quarter due to saturation and the economic downturn, high-tech researcher Gartner Dataquest said Friday. It was the worst showing in seven years, preliminary figures for the closely watched research report showed. Dell grabbed the top PC vendor position from Compaq in market share, the San Jose, Calif., researcher said. The U.S. weakness spread to the worldwide PC market, which had shipments of 32.5 million units from January through March 31, an increase of just 3.5 percent over the same period last year. "The effects of the U.S. economic slowdown are beginning to spill over into other regions as shown by their slowing growth, with the 3.5 percent world growth being the slowest since we began compiling statistics,"' said Todd Kort, principal analyst for Gartner Dataquest's Computing Platform Worldwide group. Austin, Texas-based Dell assumed the No. 1 worldwide position from Compaq with a 12.8 percent market share. The current PC component surplus helped Dell jump into the top spot because the company can pass on component price declines to its customers faster than its competitors due to a more efficient supply chain, the researcher said. The Houston-based Compaq slipped into the No. 2 spot with 12.1 percent of the world market after posting flat growth. Palo Alto, Calif.-based Hewlett-Packard maintained its No. 3 position, followed by IBM. Dell and IBM, headquartered in Armonk, N.Y., were the only top-tier vendors to have positive growth in both the worldwide and U.S. markets. Inventory overhang from last year's fourth quarter also dampened the PC market, Gartner Dataquest said. Shipments during the first quarter were suppressed as vendors worked to sell off existing inventory before shipping new products. Dell increased its lead in the United States, garnering 23 percent of the market. Compaq and Hewlett-Packard lost market share as a result of excessive inventory. Gateway also lost market share and will pursue a more aggressive pricing strategy as it refocuses on selling hardware profitably, rather than services along with hardware, the report said. "Even if component inventories were in balance with demand, saturation in the U.S. and parts of Europe is an issue that is clearly not going to go away, and vendors and the industry must look for ways to maintain revenue opportunities,'' said Charles Smulders, principal analyst for Gartner Dataquest's Computing Platform Worldwide group. Most PC vendors recognize saturation but prefer not to greatly alter well-tested product and marketing formulas, he said. Instead they look to international expansion to compensate for the decreased U.S. demand.