Led by a buoyant buying sentiment in the notebook segment, PC sales crossed 6.3 million units in 2006-07, registering a growth of 26% over the previous year. PC sales are projected to touch 8 million units in 2007-08, according to the annual data by apex IT hardware body, Manufacturers Association for Information Technology (MAIT).
Notebook sales grew by 97%, while desktop sales rose by 19%. Demand was highest from the telecom, banking and financial service sectors, education and BPO, and rose also on account of e-governance initiatives by the government. Buoyancy in home market and southward trend in pricing also contributed to the growth.
?The industry is also eagerly awaiting the long overdue policy for the manufacture of IT and electronics products. This could play a critical role not only in boosting highly capital intensive activities like the manufacture of semiconductors, LCDs and storage devices, but also in expanding the consumption of IT goods and services in the country,? said MAIT executive director Vinnie Mehta.
The business segment accounted for 74% of the total PC sales, registering a growth rate of 18% over the previous year. However, the home PC market remained stagnant at a growth rate of 23%.
Multi-national brands accounted for 39% of the total desktop market, registering a growth of 33%. The share of Indian brands fell from 28% to 23%. The UPS market grew by 80% at 21.7 lakh units.