PC mkt sees highest growth after 2000: IDC

GURGAON: The Indian PC market has grown by 32 percent in 2004 over 2003. According to IDC India's preliminary market findings on the Indian desktop and portable market, this is the strongest growth seen in these form-factors after year 2000 where the market grew by more than 60 percent.






IDC India's results for the fourth quarter of 2004 show that the desktop and portables totaled 934,000 units in the fourth quarter of 2004, to represent a year on year gain of 33 percent. "The recent re-surfacing of finance-based purchase options also had an accelerating effect on the consumer desktop market, which is already witnessing a consistent drop in end-user prices for both the branded and the unbranded players," added IDC India computing products research assistant manager Aman Munglani.





Unit shipments in 4Q 2004 grew by six percent sequentially and 27 percent year-on-year. Portable PCs slowed to almost flat growth for the first time in three years in 4Q 2004 and totaled 56,600 units for a nominal one percent sequential growth in unit shipments. On a year on year basis, the market for portables grew 116 percent.





Calendar year, 2004 figures also closed on a high, growing 32 percent on a year on year basis to total at 3.4 million units in 2004. Desktops that grew 28.2 percent, totaled at 3.2 million units in 2004 grew 128 percent in calendar 2004 over 2003. Several factors like two rounds of duty revisions in 2004 contributed to the success of the Indian PC hardware market. According to IDC, speculation over elections and the center's stand on economic policies, an uneven monsoon and the fluctuation in the supply of components did little to inhibit the growth of a market that was positively driven by strong demand from the consumer desktop market and the banking and the finance segments. The software and the distribution segments coupled with old favorites, the government segment, played a critical role to the increase in numbers seen last year.





"Though it is certain that the WTO ITA duty revisions will accelerate activity in the Indian PC market from 2Q05 through 2006, purchase decisions that have been slowing down since 4Q, 2004 in anticipation of the post-duty reduction price drops in 2005, will likely result in a slightly slower-than-usual commercial activity during the first quarter of the new year (1Q05)," added Munglani.

As per IDC's 3Q, 2004 forecast, the PC market is expected to grow by 28 percent in 2005 and 26 percent in 2006 year-on-year.