Asian PC Market Bounces Into The Millennium With A Record High, IDC Says.

For the sixth consecutive quarter, the Asia/Pacific (excluding Japan) PC market expanded to post another quarterly shipment record in Q1 2000, according to preliminary results released by IDC Asia/Pacific. Total regional PC shipments amounted to 4.24 million units in the first quarter, surpassing volumes from the previous year's first quarter by more than 43 percent and five percent over Q4 1999. Although countries such as Australia, Vietnam and Malaysia experienced seasonal dips, the overall market was boosted by Korea and India's sequential shipments in particular, as well as support from China and Singapore.

PC shipments were buoyed by the Internet PC program in Korea, an initiative led by the government to boost PC ownership among lower-income groups. This government-advocated drive was most pronounced in Korea but was also prevalent in other Asian economies as governments continue to look upon developing technology usage as a means of sustained economic recovery. Fears that Y2K would continue to dampen PC demand in the first quarter were unfounded as businesses quickly resumed spending. Low PC penetration rates continued to accelerate demand while the widely publicized processor shortage seemed to have minimal impact.

Competitively, Samsung leapt over both IBM and Legend to lead the regional PC market in Q1. Despite not having a place in the Korean government-led Internet PC program, Samsung owed its success to its "Academy Campaign," a program targeting higher PC ownership among students. The vendor's shipments of approximately 384,000 units represented a hefty increase of 36 percent from the previous quarter and bolstered the Korean vendor's market share from seven percent to 9.1 percent. However, compared to Samsung's stellar performance, the remaining top five regional vendors' results were relatively lackluster with zero to negative sequential growth rates.

China's Legend had two outstanding quarters of growth that earned it regional leadership in Q4 1999, but the vendor's momentum could not be sustained in Q1 2000. Although year-on-year growth was 122 percent, compared with the previous quarter, unit shipments dipped by two percent to 360,600 units, equating to 8.5 percent market share. IBM held on to 7.2 percent market share, and although the vendor experienced slight negative growth overall, its slide was tapered by positive growth in Korea, China, and Indonesia. Compaq's shipments also declined, ceding 0.8 percent market share from Q4 1999 to 6.0 percent, although maintaining the fourth-place position in Q1 2000 with 254,400 unit shipments. For Hewlett-Packard, Q1 2000 was a zero-sum game. Despite an admirable performance across India, Singapore, Hong Kong, and New Zealand, a 33 percent slump in its largest market from the previous quarter, the PRC, resulted in shipments remaining stagnant with 227,300 units shipped and 5.4 percent regional market share.

The top five country rankings in Q4 1999 remained the same in Q1 2000. Most noteworthy was Korea's 36 percent quarterly increase that enabled it to cross consolidated its second-place ranking, and at the same time captured an additional five percent market share to 24.6 percent. In comparison, the country with the largest market share, the PRC, grew at a slower rate of just two percent, but nonetheless maintained 32.4 percent market share, down from 33.8 percent. In third place, Australia turned in a disappointing first quarter, dropping by 17 percent to 440,000 from 530,000 units as commercial spending slowed on news that the July 1st GST implementation could mean substantial business savings. This led to Australia shedding three percent market share to 10.4 percent. India made consistent progress to keep fourth place, finishing 13 percent up from 300,000 to 342,000 units, and Taiwan rounded up the top five countries in Asia/Pacific.

These findings stem from IDC's Asia/Pacific Quarterly PC Tracker. To purchase this service, please contact Kristin Williams at 949-442-4008 or by email at [e-mail]. For more information on IDC Asia/Pacific's research offerings, please contact Beth Freedman or Lisa Bloom at 508-872-8200 (see Table 1 and 2 on page 7).