The FINANCIAL — The Thailand PC market began 2013 on a negative note as sluggish demand in the consumer market brought about a 20% decline year-over-year in Q1, with shipments reaching only 800,000 units, according to IDC's Asia/Pacific Quarterly PC Tracker.
Consumer demand for PCs weakened as the quarter progressed, which resulted in a struggle for channel partners to overcome cash flow issues, accodirding to IDC.
“Channel partners reacted quickly to the slowdown by reducing PC buy-in to make room for faster-moving devices like tablets" said Jarit Sidhu, Market Analyst for Client Devices Research at IDC Thailand.
"Insufficient touch panel supplies also prevented vendors from capitalizing on the growing demand for touch-enabled devices, and limited the impact of Windows 8 overall," he added.
On a positive note, the overall commercial market remained stable, with stronger demand coming from both public-sector organizations and private enterprises, according to IDC.
“Although SMB demand fell drastically due to the rise in minimum wage nationwide, the public sector and large enterprises did not feel the effects as much, as demand remained healthy from the finance, telco and healthcare sectors,” Sidhu said.
Overall though, IDC remains conservative on its forecast for 2013 for the Thailand PC market. The market experienced a decline for the first time in 2012 and IDC predicts that the weak momentum will persist throughout 2013.
“Consumer wallet share is likely to continue leaning towards smartphones and tablets, while demand from government agencies and private enterprises is unlikely to offset weaker SMB spending. With the market getting crowded, IDC expects vendors to increasingly expand beyond top-tier provinces to target untapped markets to sustain growth,” said Daniel Pang, ASEAN Research Manager, Client Devices at IDC Asia/Pacific.
Acer reclaimed previously relinquished market share in Q1, though this was more due to competitors’ inventory issues, as the vendor remained under pressure from rising players like Lenovo and Samsung. Dell and HP continued to struggle in the consumer market, though Dell managed to offset this somewhat by executing successful campaigns to target the SMB segment, according to IDC.
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