Monitor market starts post-recession recovery

Analyst house Meko reports good first-quarter growth, but warns market will remain challenging for some time

Monitor sales were up nine per cent on last year during Q1 2010

The desktop monitor market is showing signs of post-recession recovery, with sales topping 11.5 million units within EMEA during the first quarter of 2010.

Market analyst Meko said the number of monitors sold during Q1 was nine per cent higher than during the same period last year.

Andy Barker, analyst director at Meko, said the first quarter figures should be treated with some caution and that market conditions will remain challenging during the next quarter.

“The monitor market is at last showing gradual recovery following the recession, but the increases are against poor trading periods in 2009 and we are doubtful that, in value terms, it will be positive,” he said.

Meko commended desktop monitor vendors AOC, LG, NEC, HP and Dell for making a strong start to the year, while Samsung, Acer, Hannspree and Fujitsu have all reported year-on-year decreases.

"The quarter has seen brands such as AOC record growth of over 150 per cent, while other brands have performed quite poorly in testing conditions," added Barker.