Global PC shipments declines 1.4 Percent: Gartner

Worldwide PC shipments declined 1.4 percent compared to the year ago quarter taking the tally to 92.2 million units in 4Q, 2011.

''While economic uncertainty in western Europe had an effect on consumer PC shipments, expectations of a healthier economic outlook in North America could not stimulate consumer PC demand in that region. The healthy professional PC market as well as growth in emerging markets could not compensate for the weaknesses in mature markets, with overall growth still negative,'' said Mikako Kitagawa, principal analyst at Gartner.

Gartner analysts say a major impact will be felt which is expected to materialize in the first half of 2012, and potentially continue throughout 2012.

HP retained its number one position in the fourth quarter of 2011, despite a shipment decline of 16.2 percent year over year. The company also had to battle against aggressive pricing from competitors and deal with weak consumer PC demand in the holiday season.

Lenovo experienced the strongest growth among the top five vendors, as its PC shipments grew 23 percent in the fourth quarter of 2011, and it further held its place as the number two vendor in global PC shipments. The company's growth was attributed to its aggressive pricing in both the professional and consumer markets.

Dell had a good quarter with shipment growth in most regions. It enjoyed stable growth in the professional sector, driven by upgrades to Windows 7. APAC region continued to be the major growth market for the company, as it achieved 30 percent growth in the region.

Asus stayed in the number five position, despite generally weak consumer sales. Its shift from mini-notebooks to regular notebooks was successful, as close to 80 percent of the company's mobile PCs shipments were regular notebooks in the fourth quarter of 2011.

In Asia/Pacific, PC shipments reached 30.4 million units, an 8.5 percent increase from the fourth quarter of 2010. The market performance was below Gartner’s anticipated growth of 10.6 percent. The preliminary findings show weaker shipment growth in China, India, and Thailand.

Global PC shipments reached 352.8 million units in 2011 with a 0.5 percent increase from 2010. A weak consumer PC market, particularly in mature markets, was a major contributor to this stagnation, despite good growth in the professional market emerging markets grew steadily, driven by low initial PC penetration.

PC shipments in Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) totaled 28.9 million units in the fourth quarter of 2011, a 9.6 percent decline from the same period in 2010.