PC Market Strong On European Demand

According to IDC, the worldwide PC market remained strong in the second quarter of 2004, with growth of over 15% marking the fifth consecutive quarter of double-digit growth.

From IDC’s press release:

Strong demand in Europe as well as better than expected results in Canada and Latin America boosted shipments to 39.7 million, roughly 1-2% ahead of forecast. Aggressive prices continue to fuel both consumer and commercial replacements, particularly for desktop systems. While portable growth remains strong, demand shifted toward desktops during the second quarter.

“Demand in Europe, supported by the strong Euro and aggressive promotions, was the biggest driver of the quarter,” said Loren Loverde, director of IDC’s Worldwide Quarterly PC Tracker. “Consumer demand and commercial replacements seem fairly steady across the major regions with growth slightly slower than expected in Asia, and faster in Europe, Canada and Latin America. Overall growth remains solid and strength in Europe bodes well for the second half of the year.”

“Despite warnings from some sectors of the information technology industry, the recovery seems to be holding steady for now,” said Roger Kay, vice president of Client Computing at IDC. “Consumers remain excited by digital media, and commercial organizations are in the full flood of PC replacement. This trend should persist at least through the end of the year.