Global PC sales notched their worst recorded quarterly decline ever over the holiday season with Apple Inc. suffering the least as analysts agree the recovery in the market has been pushed out to 2024.
Gartner said global PC shipments fell 28.5% to 65.3 million units in the fourth quarter, marking “the largest quarterly shipment decline since Gartner began tracking the PC market in the mid-1990s.” That was worse than the previous worst that was the third quarter.Broken down by company, Gartner’s number were similar to rival firm International Data Group’s tabulations that were released late Tuesday, with the usual exception to how the firms calculate Apple Inc. AAPL shipments.
“The anticipation of a global recession, increased inflation and higher interest rates have had a major impact on PC demand,” said Mikako Kitagawa, director analyst at Gartner. “Since many consumers already have relatively new PCs that were purchased during the pandemic, a lack of affordability is superseding any motivation to buy, causing consumer PC demand to drop to its lowest level in years.”
IDC had reported global PC shipments fell 28.1% to 67.2 million units in the fourth quarter from a year ago, with annual shipments falling 16.5% to 292.3 million units.