The global personal computer market has suffered the steepest decline in nearly 25 years as shipments reported a fall of 19.5 per cent at 68 million units in the third quarter that ended September 30, 2022, reflecting a sustained weak demand for PCs.

According to research firm Gartner, the poor appetite for PCs and lesser priority for the purchase of PCs in the IT budgets of organisations are cited as reasons for the poor demand. Lenovo maintains the top slot with a market share of 25.2 per cent.

“This is the steepest market decline since we began tracking the PC market in the mid-1990s and the fourth consecutive quarter of year-over-year decline,” the company said.

‘Disappointing results’

Mikako Kitagawa, Director Analyst at Gartner said, “This quarter’s results could mark a historic slowdown for the PC market. High inventory levels have now become a major issue given weak PC demand in both the consumer and business markets. Back-to-school sales ended with disappointing results despite massive promotions and price drops.”

The PC market has begun to witness an interesting trend. The supply chains, which were disrupted and suffered heavily during the pandemic, are doing better now. On the business side, geopolitical and economic uncertainties led to more selective IT spending, and PCs were not at the top of the priority list.

Marketshares

Lenovo has gained market share compared to a year ago, although shipments declined year-over-year. While the company’s overall shipments were down in all regions except Canada, the EMEA (Europe, Middle-East and Africa) desktop market saw growth.

With shipments of 1.71 crore units in the quarter, Lenovo gets a market share of 25.2 per cent, followed by HP (1.27 crore units) with 18.7 per cent and Dell (1.20 crore units) with 17.7 per cent.

All the three players, however, have witnessed a steep fall in volumes when compared to the comparable quarter previous year.