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 : Dell Technologies Inc. -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: kemble s. matter who wrote (71281)	10/11/1998 12:46:00 AM
From: Mohan Marette	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 176387

China:Direct sales of PCs for the first half of 1998 reach 42%! Hi Kemble: See if this is any good.<g> Well that is it for me for today,seeya and good night. ============================================ Asia/Pacific Sees Rise in Direct Sales of PCs: Dataquest October 2, 1998 (BOSTON) -- Direct sales of personal computers in the Asia/Pacific region rose 15 percent in the first half of 1998, according to market research firm Dataquest Inc. Overall, the Asia/Pacific region experienced slow growth of just 3 percent compared to the first half of 1997. The figures are for regional sales, excluding Japan. From January through June of this year, more than 1.6 million PCs were ordered in Asia/Pacific through a combination of vendor sales forces, vendor retail operations, and direct fax, telephone and Internet facilities. Asia/Pacific PC shipments sourced through resellers declined by more than 3 percent from the first half of 1997 for a total of nearly 2.7 million units in the first half of 1998. While much of the Asia/Pacific market has slipped further into a recession, the PC market in China has posted healthy growth because of the popularity of unbranded white boxes. White box PCs accounted for 27 percent of all first half 1998 shipments in the Asia/Pacific region and 60 percent of all units ordered directly by end users in this period. PC shipments in the China market alone (excluding Hong Kong) exceeded 1.4 million units in the first half of 1998, accounting for one-third of the region's total units. More than 600,000 PCs were ordered through direct means in China during the first half of the year. "Continued growth in the volume of direct-channel PCs in the Asia/Pacific region is a reflection of massive white box consumption, and the impact of large markets like China that are still growing this year," said Lane Leskela, senior industry analyst for Dataquest's Asia/Pacific PC and Printer Distribution Channels program. Margin pressure from local brands and white boxes configured by PC stores and dealers from standardized, low-cost components are affecting the competitiveness of some traditional brands. The region's PC component volume remains high in the wake of tremendous price erosion from the original manufacturers. "The Asia/Pacific region is already seeing the sub-US$500 PC creep into the market, courtesy of the white box assemblers," Leskela said. "This process will continue to erode margins and PC market share for international brand resellers who will be forced to focus on higher-margin systems and value-added services." Channel consolidation is an inevitable trend in Asia/Pacific as buying power continues to diminish and the region's PC market grows less attractive to official resellers. "With white box and entry-level PC prices eroding traditional margins, the low-cost/high-availability direct order model is reinforced in the Asia/Pacific market this year," Leskela said. "Dataquest expects PCs ordered through direct means to rise to as much as 40 percent of the region's shipments by the end of 1998." ...