Lenovo edges HP out of No.1 spot as PC giant’s struggles continues

CHINA’S Lenovo Group edged out Silicon Valley icon Hewlett-Packard to become the world’s biggest PC maker in the third quarter, according to data from research house Gartner.

A rival to Gartner, IDC, still ranks HP in the lead – but by less than half a percentage point – in terms of PC shipments worldwide. Both studies reinforce HP’s struggles against rivals as new chief executive Meg Whitman tries to overhaul the stalled 73-year-old company.

Worldwide shipments of personal computers fell more than 8 per cent last quarter, according to both research firms, which blamed myriad factors including retailers and vendors ridding themselves of older inventory ahead of the launch of Microsoft’s Windows 8 operating system, the growing popularity of mobile gadgets like tablets, and a slowing economy.

PC demand growth has crumbled over the past year as more consumers flock to ultra-portable and increasingly powerful tablets and smartphones for basic computing.

Both sets of data show that Lenovo, Taiwan’s Acer and other Asian PC makers are taking share away from US competitors HP and Dell, which held on to the No.3 spot in the quarter.

Lenovo, which has a market value of $8.2 billion (£5.1bn), said it believed there was room for continued growth.

“We are establishing even deeper roots in each major market around the world. In addition to localised sales and distribution teams in major markets, we are establishing an even stronger manufacturing footprint,” Lenovo chief executive Yuanqing Yang said.