India’s PC shipments (desktops, notebooks and tablets) grew 48 per cent in Q1 CY22 to a record-breaking 5.8 million units, surpassing the previous record of 5.3 million in Q3 CY21, according to a report by Canalys.
Shipments have grown by 44 per cent on average in the last six quarters, despite sustained pressure on the global supply chain. Shipments surpassed the 5-million-mark for the third consecutive quarter.
India now accounts for 5 per cent of global PC shipments, up from 3 per cent two years ago.
Self-reliance in production
Jash Shah, Research Analyst at Canalys, said: “There are two main reasons for India’s phenomenal performance this quarter. First, India’s success at managing Covid, despite its huge population, has to be recognised. While most of the world was in lockdown, India was remaining open to a large degree. This helped the economy resurge, creating additional demand for PCs and other IT infrastructure.”
“Second, India is slowly but surely inching toward self-reliance in PC production,” Shah added.
According to Shah, “18 per cent of all PCs sold in India are now manufactured locally, implying that India’s vulnerability to black swan events in China is diminishing and that its own appetite for PC consumption is increasing. While global macroeconomic events are raising multiple concerns over the sustainability of this growth, India will stay strong for the coming few quarters, despite the softness expected in other global markets.”
In terms of PC shipments, notebooks accounted for the highest number of shipments, with 3.4 million units shipped, up 36 per cent year-on-year. Desktop shipments surpassed 880,000 units, a 64 per cent increase over Q1 CY21. Tablets were the strongest category in terms of growth, with shipments reaching 1.6 million, up 69 per cent year-on-year. This was largely due to government orders picking up again following a two-year hiatus.
HP tops vendors list
In terms of top vendors across segments, HP took the first spot with a 24.9 per cent market share, followed by Lenovo with a 19.3 per cent share with 1.1 million shipments. Acer took the third spot with a 10.7 per cent market share, followed by Dell at 10 per cent and Samsung at 7.4 per cent.
HP continued its dream run in notebook and desktop shipments as well with a 34 per cent share of the total market, up by 42 per cent and outpacing the next highest vendor, almost twice over terms of total shipments. It was followed by Lenovo with a 17.7 per cent share. Dell, Acer and Asus rounded out the top five with 13.7 per cent, 9.9 per cent and 6.2 per cent market share, respectively .
In the tablet market, Samsung took the lead with a 27.6 per cent market share. Lenovo took the second spot with a 23.6 per cent share, followed by Lava at 13.2 per cent. Lava was followed by Acer at 13.1 per cent while Apple took the fifth spot with a 12.6 per cent market share.
HP’s manufacturing initiatives
In terms of absolute numbers in overall PC shipments, HP saw growth of 42 per cent to 1.5 million units in Q1 CY22. HP has historically dominated the commercial PC market (desktops, notebooks, workstations and tablets), as per the report. Further, it added, “a strong comeback” of 29 per cent year-on-year growth and a 23 per cent market share in the more competitive consumer segment underlines HP’s strategic pricing and channel strategies for the Indian PC market.
“Its local manufacturing initiatives, combined with a diverse range of customised PC offerings across segment groups, drove HP’s total shipments to an all-time high,” the report said.
Lenovo doubles capacity
Buoyed by its consistent performance in notebook and tablet shipments, which increased by 26 per cent and 53 per cent year-on-year, respectively, Lenovo’s overall PC shipments grew 29 per cent to surpass the 1-million-mark for a third quarter in a row.
“Lenovo’s ability to channel this mounting demand for notebooks across segments resonates with its global supply chain digitalisation initiatives and significant R&D investments. While Lenovo sees greater untapped potential in the Indian PC market across segments (particularly private and public education), a third manufacturing line recently added to its Puducherry plant aims to double the current capacity,” said the report.
Acer surpasses Dell
Acer surpassed the 6,00,000-mark for the first time in the Indian PC market (including tablets), pushing Dell to the fourth spot. It shipped 6,26,000 units in Q1 2022, up by a whopping 256 per cent y-o-y and 1.7 times more than Q4 2021. The uptick was intensified by Acer’s overall performance in the Indian market. Further, its tablet shipments grew by a staggering 1,288 per cent to 2,05,000 units in Q1 2022. This was the strongest growth category for an individual vendor in Q1 2022.
“Acer’s ability to compete in government tenders while offering a diverse range of locally manufactured and efficient PCs enabled it to reap massive benefits,” it said.
Dell recorded just over 5,80,000 PC (including tablets) shipments in Q1 2022, up by 9 per cent y-o-y. Its desktop shipments increased by 65 per cent in Q1 2022, taking shipments to 1,11,000 units. Furthermore, it experienced consistent single-digit growth across all segment groups.
In India, Samsung is predominantly a tablet vendor, with shipments recording a new high of 4,33,000 units in a single quarter, up 31 per cent y-o-y. “The gradual re-emergence of government tenders boosted Samsung’s shipments in the Indian market, allowing it to reclaim the top spot in the tablet market,” as per the report.
“Inflation woes continue to plague the market in 2022, as unprecedented global food prices have sent local prices soaring, with average inflation over 6 per cent for the past three months,” added Shah.
“With the RBI pushing up base lending rates, which are expected to continue to increase through the year to battle wholesale inflation, businesses in debt will feel the crunch, as they have less capital to work with. While consumers will stop making discretionary purchases, companies, both small and large, have shown an inclination to freeze budgets, stop hiring and cut spending, which will have a ripple effect on IT procurement, and thereby PC demand. Canalys advises PC vendors to exercise caution while planning for the quarters ahead. At the same time, large government tenders for education are expected to keep the market buoyant,” Shah added.