The Hindu Business Line : PC sales up 39 pc in Q1

BUOYED by increasing IT spending by industry verticals and corporate sector, PC sales in the first quarter of 2004-05 crossed 8.9 lakh units, posting a year-on-year growth of 39 per cent.

According to the quarterly industry performance review for April-June released by hardware association, the Manufacturers Association for Information Technology (MAIT), PC sales crossed 8.9 lakh units while sales of notebooks and servers witnessed unprecedented growth.

The quarter was also marked by strong consumption of printers and other peripherals.

However, the sales of PCs in the first quarter were eight per cent lower than that in the fourth quarter of the previous fiscal. "Apart from the traditional sectors, higher consumption was also witnessed in SMEs, IT training institutes, and other computer-centric small enterprises," a MAIT release said.

"The growing number of retail outlets and malls has also added to the PC consumption. In addition, the trend of increased PC purchase in smaller towns and cities, witnessed last year, continued steadfast."

Moreover, aggressive pricing by the PC vendors also helped improve penetration, especially in the household and SME segments.

PC sales in the first half of the current fiscal are projected to cross 18 lakh units, MAIT said.

The growth in sales of notebooks/laptops was also strong at 35,320 units in April-June 2004, an increase of 139 per cent compared to the same period last year.