Global PC market racks up seven quarters of decline

But despite gloom, EMEA market did not decline as much as previous quarters

Global PC shipments dropped 6.9 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2013 when compared with the previous year, according to the latest Gartner figures.

But the analyst is convinced that the market has bottomed out as emerging territories go straight for tablet/mobile devices rather than PCs.

Mikako Kitagawa, principal analyst at Gartner, said: "Although PC shipments continued to decline in the worldwide market in the fourth quarter, we increasingly believe markets, such as the US, have bottomed out as the adjustment to the installed base slows.

"Strong growth in tablets continued to negatively impact PC growth in emerging markets. In emerging markets, the first connected device for consumers is most likely a smartphone, and their first computing device is a tablet. As a result, the adoption of PCs in emerging markets will be slower as consumers skip PCs for tablets."

On a global basis Lenovo held on to the lead in Q4, with close contender HP not far behind. Dell held on to third position, with Acer and Asus hanging on in the top five.

However, EMEA, despite seeing a drop in Q4 shipments to 26 million – representing a decline of 6.7 compared with the same quarter the previous year, PC shipments increased 17.7 per cent when compared on a consecutive quarterly basis, Gartner said. This was mainly down to the increased availability of hybrid ultramobile devices available at lower price points.

Isabelle Durand, principal research analyst at Gartner, said: "This confirms the ongoing transition in the market, but it may also signal that we are reaching the end of a period of readjustment in EMEA that started two years ago."

In terms of vendors, HP held on to the top spot in EMEA for Q4, with Lenovo in second, Acer in third place, Asus in fourth and Dell in fifth place.

And in Gartner's own words, the outlook for the PC market is not rosy, with the analyst predicting a further seven per cent slump in shipments for the coming year.