Global PC market sees steepest drop in over two decades in Q3

Gartner’s data blamed ‘selective’ IT spending following geopolitical uncertainties

Global PC shipments totaled 68 million units in the third quarter of 2022, a 19.5 per cent slump from the same period last year, according to preliminary results by Gartner.

This is the steepest market decline since the analyst firm began tracking the PC market in the mid-1990s and the fourth consecutive quarter of year on year decline, it said.

Gartner highlighted companies struggling to manage inventory following supply chain issues and businesses being more particular about where they plan to put their money as the key drivers behind the Q3 drop.

"This quarter's results could mark a historic slowdown for the PC market," said Gartner director analyst, Mikako Kitagawa.

"While supply chain disruptions have finally eased, high inventory has now become a major issue given weak PC demand in both the consumer and business markets.

"Back to school sales ended with disappointing results despite massive promotions and price drops, due to a lack of need as many consumers had purchased new PCs in the last two years.

"On the business side, geopolitical and economic uncertainties led to more selective IT spending, and PCs were not at the top of the priority list."

Top PC vendors see shipments fall

The top three vendors in the worldwide PC market remained unchanged in Q3 2022, with Lenovo maintaining the number one spot in shipments with 25.2 per cent market share.

However, the leading PC vendor still saw its shipments deflate 15.3 per cent year on year to 17.1 million units.

While the company's overall shipments were down in all regions except Canada, the EMEA desktop market saw growth, fueled by production beginning in Lenovo's first in-house manufacturing facility in Europe which opened in Hungary this June.

Second place vendor HP experienced a challenging quarter with a sharp decline in overall global shipments of 27.9 per cent

HP recorded growth in select regions in the desktop market, but overall laptop shipments suffered declines.

Dell completed the top three and narrowed its market share difference from HP, recording year on year growth in the desktop market in all regions except in Asia Pacific.

However, Dell's laptop shipments declined in all regions except for Japan.

The vendor's shipments fell 21.2 per cent in Q3 with around 12 million units.