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PC sales rise 43 pc in Q1

Our Bureau

NEW DELHI, May 6

PERSONAL computer (PC) shipments in India rose 43 per cent in the first quarter of 2001 at 4.91 lakh units over the same quarter last year, boosting the overall performance of Asia-Pacific PC market in the period.

According to International Data Corporation (IDC), India was the region's bright spot in the quarter, which saw the total PC market in Asia-Pacific (excluding Japan) reaching over 5.1 million units, registering a jump of 19 per cent over Q1 in 2000.

While the total PC sales in the region during the first quarter of this year dipped 7 per cent compared to the last quarter of 2000, India bucked the trend by posting a 10.7 per cent growth.

PC shipments during Q4 in 2000 in the country stood at 4.44 lakh, accounting for 8 per cent of the total shipments in the region. In the first quarter of this year, India's share moved up to 9.6 per cent.

China, which accounted for about 39 per cent share of the PC market in Asia-Pacific, was the only country in the region to post a higher growth rate (44.8 per cent) in the first quarter. Nevertheless, it too recorded a negative growth (8.8 per cent) in the quarter over the last quarter of 2000.

But IDC said the results indicated a return to normal market seasonality where sequential growth in the first quarter of the year was normally lower.

Meanwhile, IDC's biannual ICMM (Internet Commerce Market Model) Report says that by 2005, China, Korea and India will account for more than 72 per cent of the projected 240 million internet users in Asia-Pacific (excluding Japan).

The number of Internet users in India is expected to touch 40 million by 2005. However, this is far below that the 120-million user base China is projected to achieve by that period.

The report predicts that Asia-Pacific will overtake the US in total internet users by 2005, clocking a compounded annual growth rate in excess of 30 per cent.

The PC will remain the key web access device in the period, but handheld devices are also taking off in Asia-Pacific. Mobile subscribers in the region will exceed 366 million in 2004, leading to a penetration rate far exceeding that of PC.

At present, only 2.6 per cent of mobile phones are used for wireless Internet use, but IDC said it expected this proportion to increase to nearly 40 per cent by 2005.

Asia was expected to become a vibrant centre for the development of the wireless economy, with M-commerce revenues forecast to exceed $ 36 billion by 2004, IDC said.