COVID19 Puts Computer Market under Pressure

Due to the COVID19 outbreak, IDC expects sales of personal computing devices (PCDs) to decline by 9 percent this year to 374.2 million units.

In their forecast from autumn 2019, when the corona virus was not yet mentioned, analysts had already anticipated a decline of 6.8 percent to 380.2 million PCD units for 2020. PCDs include desktop PCs, workstations, notebooks and tablets.

Due to the effects of the corona virus, the analysts are now revising their forecast downwards. The traditional PC sector is expected to fall by 7.1 percent to 248 million units in 2020 and the tablet sector by 12.4 percent to 126.2 million units. By 2024, the number of PCDs sold is expected to recover to 377.2 million units, so that the average annual growth rate is still positive at 0.2 percent.

Currently, attempts to contain the spread of the virus are hampering supply chains and leading to a decline in demand. As a result, according to IDC, deliveries will decline by 8.2 percent in the first quarter of 2020 and collapse by 12.8 percent in the second quarter. In the second half of the year, the declines would then be less severe. "It will take longer for supply chains in China to recover, with few workers returning to their jobs until May, when the weather improves," said Linn Hunang, research vice president of Devices & Displays at IDC. "That's because many critical components such as printed circuit boards, monitors and touch sensors come from the regions affected by the virus outbreak."

"Production levels are at an all-time low and due to logistical problems, even finished products cannot be delivered," adds Jitesh Ubrani Research Manager Worldwide Mobile Device Trackers of IDC. Loss of wage payments due to the numerous factory closures would depress consumer demand. Although the spread of the virus is slowing down, IDC expects low growth in the coming year. In total, the analysts expect an increase of 0.6 percent to 376.6 million units.