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Strategies & Market Trends : The Thread Formerly Known as No Rest For The Wicked -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: jimbos who wrote (19693)	3/25/1999 8:54:00 AM
From: MARK C.	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 90042

Dell Expects '99 Computer Shipments to Rise 70% in Asia-Pacific Kuala Lumpur, March 24 (Bloomberg) -- Dell Computer Corp. said it expects shipments of its products in Asia-Pacific excluding Japan, to rise 70 percent in 1999, led by growth in China and Australia. That would beat the industry's expected increase of 2.7 percent, according to market research company International Data Corp. Dell doesn't give the value of its sales for the Asia Pacific region excluding Japan. Sales in Asia Pacific including Japan rose 30 percent to $1 billion in the year ended Jan. 29, 1999, out of global sales of $18 billion. Dell Asia Pacific grew at a rate of more than 70 percent in 1998, ''and we're expecting that growth rate for 1999 as well,'' Ron Goh, vice president for Asia at Dell, said in a Bloomberg Forum. ''Our business in China has grown significantly.'' The likely robust rise in shipments from Asia should boost Dell's outlook for overall sales in 1999 at a time when the company is under pressure from rivals, such as Compaq Computer Corp., which are trying to follow Dell's direct-sales strategy. Dell, which assembles a computer only after receiving orders, has unveiled lower-priced products, to tailor to customers whose purchasing power has been eroded by the plunge in Southeast Asian currencies and the economic slump. In 1998, Malaysia tumbled into its first recession in 13 years. We ''extended the product range to include entry level product systems for our customers,'' Goh said. ''For example, in our server range, we have (introduced) an entry level product . . . which is very powerful yet affordable.'' The server, at $2,500, is about 10 percent cheaper than the cheapest server it used to sell, he said. Six months ago, Dell also introduced a leasing option in Malaysia for its corporate customers to ease their financial burden when buying computers. Competitors are making similar moves. On Monday, Hewlett-Packard Co. said it will channel some of its latest investment of $15 million in Malaysia toward boosting leasing. The world's largest maker of printers is offering loans for the purchase of its printers, computers and other products. Biggest Share Dell built computers for customers in Asia, including for those in Japan and Singapore, at its factory in the northern Malaysian state of Penang. The plant began operations in November 1995. The company has the biggest share of the Malaysian computer market in 1998, in terms of sales, according to market researcher International Data Corp. In terms of units sold, it came in second after Acer Inc.