India’s PC market pushed past four million units in Q1 of calendar 2022: IDC

With the high demand for PCs in India for those learning and working remotely, the PC market shipped over 4.3 million units from January to March 2022

India’s traditional PC market that comprises desktops, notebooks and workstations delivered another strong quarter during the January to March 2022 period shipping over 4.3 million units with a Year-Over-Year (Y-O-Y) growth of 37.7%, said International Data Corporation (IDC) on May 19.

While the notebook category continued to be the volume driver with 3.1 million units, the desktop category saw more than a million units for the first time since 3Q2014, it reported. A recovery in the government segment continued consumer demand and a channel inventory push from the vendors helped the market to remain upbeat, it said.

The demand for PCs continued to stay strong across segments as people continued to procure PCs for remote learning and working. With the financial year-end in Q1 (Jan-Mar), the government segment witnessed a significant recovery, enterprise and SME buying remained upbeat and grew 47.2% and 31.7% Y-O-Y respectively. Additionally, vendors tried to procure sufficient stock in anticipation of supply delays due to lockdowns in China, as per the data put out by IDC.

While online channels had a share of 13.4% and witnessed Y-O-Y growth of 17.5%, offline channels witnessed the bigger spike as they grew by 41.4% Y-O-Y, said the research outfit.

Bharath Shenoy, Senior Market Analyst, PC Devices, IDC India said, “The consumer segment stayed positive as it witnessed an impressive 27.9% Y-O-Y growth. While e-tail channels experienced good traction, the relaxation of COVID-19 related restrictions led to a surge in retail footfall as an increased number of people started buying PCs from offline stores, thereby leading to a strong consumer quarter.’‘

With schools and colleges reopening, vendors were back-to-school campaigns in Q2, which might extend consumer momentum. However, high inflation and rising device prices may dampen sentiment as consumers delay their purchases, he cautioned.

IDC’s top five PC players in India during 1Q2022