PC market declines 19.9% in Oct-Dec

The combined desk-based and mobile PC market in India totalled nearly 1.96 million units in the fourth quarter (October-December) of 2013, a 19.9 per cent decrease over the fourth quarter of 2012, according to research firm Gartner Inc.

“Consumers accounted for 49 percent of total PC sales in the fourth quarter of 2013,” said Vishal Tripathi, principal research analyst at Gartner, said in a statement on Tuesday.

“In the absence of any government orders this quarter, the Indian PC market performed dismally, re-emphasizing the fact that with current economic sentiments and the current political scenario, enterprises are deferring their purchases,” Tripathi said.

White boxes (including parallel imports), which accounted for 44 per cent of the overall desktop market, declined 10 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2013 compared to the same period last year. In the fourth quarter, mobile PCs registered 27 per cent year-on-year increase.

Dell increased its market share in the fourth quarter on the back of strong growth in notebooks which increased 49 per cent year over year. This growth primarily came from the consumer segment where Dell grew by 70 per cent. HP’s market share in the consumer segment grew by 3 per cent compared to the last quarter.