Global PC shipments drop below 65 million for the first time since 2007

Weakening currencies have also contributed to the decline

The growth of smartphones in emerging markets and weakening currencies has caused worldwide PC shipments to drop below 65 million units for the first time since 2007, according to Gartner.

PC shipments for the first quarter of this year totalled over 64 million – a year-on-year decline from over 71 million. Lenovo came held the biggest share with over 12 million units shipped, followed by HP (over 11 million) and Dell (9 million).

Gartner principal analyst  Mikako Kitigawa added that weakening currencies against the US dollar has contributed to the downfall. She said: “All major regions showed year-over-year shipment declines, with Latin America showing the steepest drop, where PC shipments declined 32.4 per cent. The Latin American PC market was intensely impacted by Brazil, where the problematic economy and political instability adversely affected the market

EMEA saw 19.5 million shipments in Q1 2016 – a 10 per cent year-on-year decline. Gartner claimed demand in Germany and the UK remained stable, but the PC market in France was hit by consumer preference on HD TVs.