Global shipments of PCs rose for the first time in five years in Q1 2017

Global shipments of PCs rose for the first time on an annualized basis in five years.

In the first quarter of 2017 the number of PC shipments increased by 0.6 percent year-over-year, according to calculations made by the research firm International Data Corp (IDC).

“The traditional PC market has been through a tough phase, with competition from tablets and smartphones as well as lengthening lifecycles pushing PC shipments down roughly 30 percent from a peak in 2011,” Jay Chou, research manager, IDC PCD Tracker, was quoted as saying in a news release.

“Nevertheless, users have generally delayed PC replacements rather than giving up PCs for other devices,” Chou added. “The commercial market is beginning a replacement cycle that should drive growth throughout the forecast. Consumer demand will remain under pressure, although growth in segments like PC Gaming as well as rising saturation of tablets and smartphones will move the consumer market toward stabilization as well.”

HP Inc. took the number one spot in terms of market share in the first quarter, with 13.1 million shipments. China’s Lenovo was in second position, with growth of 1.7 percent globally, while Dell came in the third, with 6.2 percent year over year growth.

The PC industry took a downturn in 2011 amid heightened demand for smartphones and tablets that can be used to access social media, maps, search engines, and email – making them direct PC competitors in many aspects.