The fall is vertiginous and the bottom has not yet apparently been reached for the computer market.
Over the first three months of the year, PC shipments (56.9 million) fell by 29% worldwide, according to calculations by the specialist firm IDC.
This is the fifth quarter of sharp decline in a row for the sector, victim of both a collapse in demand, macroeconomic conditions which weigh on budgets and excess inventories.
More worrying for the market, the volume of sales recorded is below the level it had at the start of 2019, when the Covid and the confinements had not yet completely disrupted the demand for IT equipment.
The player most affected at the start of the year is none other than Apple.
The American group saw its sales fall by 40.5% compared to the first quarter of 2022, reducing its market share to 7.2%.
During the presentation of the results last February, the group's financial director, Luca Maestri, had warned that sales of Macs and iPads would decline significantly again this quarter, but not necessarily in these proportions.
This air pocket forced Apple to temporarily suspend production of its M2 chips, which it develops itself to equip its electronic products.
The situation is not about to improve for the entire sector.
“Even with deep discounts, distributors and computer manufacturers can expect high inventories to persist through the middle of the year, or even into the third quarter.”
say IDC analysts.
The end of the tunnel will depend on the state of the global economy at the start of 2024. “
If the recession in key markets extends into next year, the recovery could be slow
”.
