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CONTEXT Research Updates deliver timely insights on key market segments.

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PC Research update


Mobile computing sales set for double-digit fall in Q2 2023

London, 14 June 2023 –  Sales of mobile computing products through European distributors are expected to continue on a downward trajectory in Q2 2023, although the second half of the year should see much improved performance, according to CONTEXT, the global IT market intelligence company.


Displays


Consumer slump pulls desktop monitor revenue under 2021 average

London, 06 July 2022 – Worsening performance in the consumer market dragged overall European distributor desktop monitor revenues beneath the index baseline in Week 23 of 2022, according to CONTEXT, the IT market intelligence company.


Imaging


Printer sales surge in Q4 2022 due to promotions and solid business demand

London, 03 February 2023 – Sales through European distributors of printer hardware increased in Q4 2022, with both volumes and revenues exceeding expectations, according to CONTEXT, the global IT market intelligence company.


Enterprise


Infrastructure sales stay comfortably above past two years thanks to strong networking performance

London, 4 July 2023 – The enterprise networking segment continued to drive enterprise infrastructure sales through European distribution, increasing 49% year-on-year (YoY) in the four weeks to week 24, according to CONTEXT, the global IT market intelligence company.


3D Printing


Mixed Results for Quarterly Global 3D Printer Shipments as Industry Attentions drawn to M&A

Inflation and increasing demand for high-end systems prop-up Industrial 3D printer revenues; unit sales in many categories fall across the globe.

LONDON, 18 July 2023 –  In a quarter which saw companies jockeying to combine to create the world’s first $1B+ 3D printing company, growth in product shipments varied across sectors as economies all over the world grappled with inflation and readied themselves for potential recessions.




Mobile computing sales set for double-digit fall in Q2 2023

London, 14 June 2023 –  Sales of mobile computing products through European distributors are expected to continue on a downward trajectory in Q2 2023, although the second half of the year should see much improved performance, according to CONTEXT, the global IT market intelligence company.

The latest figures for mobile computing (notebooks, notebook workstations and tablets) are taken from CONTEXT’s Channel Forecast Q2 2023 report.

Even the optimistic forecast predicts a −23.3% year-on-year (YoY) slump in unit sales for Q2, while the pessimistic scenario has sales falling by −32.5% over the period. And this comes after a −21.6% drop in units sold in the first quarter.

The two possible scenarios largely reflect our low expectations for the economy as a whole this quarter but the more positive outlook assumes greater sell-out of excess stock. It also takes into account stimulation programmes designed to remedy the supply problems we saw in mid-2022 and assumes these will be successful.

High inflation will continue to impact business spending in Q2, especially that of SMBs which have to manage their cash flow more carefully. Most organisations will delay purchases and where there is spending, it is unlikely to be on devices. Increases in the cost of living will continue to affect consumers, and there is a certain amount of saturation in this market due to purchases made during the pandemic.

Better times ahead

However, the outlook for the rest of the year is more positive: both the optimistic and pessimistic scenarios see performance improving. Even so, Q3 growth will still be negative due to difficult YoY comparisons. Nonetheless, the optimistic forecast for Q4 is that mobile computing unit sales will grow by 5.8% and by even more in Q1 2024. By then, even the negative scenario predicts sales growth of 3.6%.

We’ve predicted that, over 2023 as a whole, mobile computing unit sales will be somewhere between −12% and −18.9% down on 2022, with revenues reduced by −7.6% to −14.8% YoY. The smaller falls expected for revenues are a consequence of ever-rising average selling prices for mobile computing devices, even though these increases will be smaller than those of 2 or 3 years ago.

Activities designed to drive out low-end stock will be more than offset by higher demand and prices for mid-range and high-end products – something that has been happening since the start of the pandemic. So, although the current picture is rather gloomy, there are reasons to be optimistic.

To access the full forecast, please request the report here.

CONTEXT analytics, forecasts and data management solutions are embedded in the information systems of the world's major technology companies. CONTEXT processes over $200 billion of sales transactions every year for the global ITC Channel, with a team of more than 400 staff operating worldwide from London, Berlin, Paris, Madrid, Milan, Warsaw, Johannesburg, Istanbul, Dubai, Chicago, Buenos Aires, São Paulo, Mumbai, Auckland, Singapore, Seoul, Taipei and Tokyo.

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Consumer slump pulls desktop monitor revenue under 2021 average

London, 06 July 2022 – Worsening performance in the consumer market dragged overall European distributor desktop monitor revenues beneath the index baseline in Week 23 of 2022, according to CONTEXT, the IT market intelligence company.

CONTEXT’s Revenue Trend Index (RTI) plots performance against a 100 baseline representing the average weekly revenue in 2021. In Week 23, the RTI for monitor revenues overall was just under the baseline but that for consumer sales was more than −80 points below it. However, the business market continued to perform well, standing at just under 120 on the index. The backstory is one of continuing business demand, as offices reopen and are refurbished following the pandemic, while inflation and cost-of-living challenges depress the consumer market. 

As the summer continues, consumers are likely to spend less money on technology hardware and more on holidays and other experiences. A rebound in the desktop monitor market is, therefore, unlikely to happen before the autumn – if there is one at all. 

Countries and channels

The breakdown by sales channel tells a similar story. Corporate resellers are performing better than other distributors, with an RTI of around 120 for Week 23, thanks to demand for kit to upgrade offices. Small and medium resellers are also above the baseline; retail chains and business etailers are slightly under but consumer-focused etailers are stuck on −80. 

France was leading the charge earlier in 2022 but, as of around Week 21, revenues had converged with those in most other countries and were just under the baseline in the range 0 to −90. Italy is something of an outlier, currently tracking at under −80. CONTEXT research shows that it is due to a sharp decline in consumer demand as cost-of-living increases bite hard.

All eyes on docking monitors

The same market dynamics can be seen in the breakdown of revenue performance by monitor purpose. Gaming (−80) and graphics (−50) monitors have sat under the baseline for most of the year, while docking monitors are soaring above it with the RTI standing at over 200 in Week 23. These  monitors feature USB charging and ethernet capabilities making them ideal for hot-desking environments. As firms begin to embrace hybrid working, strong business demand is ensuring that most of the innovation in the market is currently happening in this niche and helping to push up Average Selling Prices (ASPs). Companies with workers splitting their time between home and the office are prepared to spend on more feature-rich models that focus on ease-of-use and connectivity, as they need to invest in fewer units.

Despite rising inflation, ASPs in the consumer space have fallen from a high of €184–5 at the start of 2022 to €180 in May. Meanwhile, ASPs for business desktop monitors rose from €204 in January to €215 in April, before falling back to €205 a month later. Rising ASPs reflect the demand for docking and feature-complete monitors, as do lower unit sales. These trends are broadly expected to continue over the course of the summer.




Printer sales surge in Q4 2022 due to promotions and solid business demand

London, 03 February 2023 – Sales through European distributors of printer hardware increased in Q4 2022, with both volumes and revenues exceeding expectations, according to CONTEXT, the global IT market intelligence company.

CONTEXT data revealed a 12.3% year-on-year (YoY) increase in unit sales and a 27.8% increase in revenue during the period thanks, in part, to aggressive promotions designed to clear entry-level stock and strong business demand for higher-end devices. These factors helped the market perform significantly better than CONTEXT’s most optimistic scenario for the quarter.

 

Revenue on the rise

Poor market performance in 2021 means the comparatives are favourable, but the product mix has changed over the last year. In Q4 2022 there was more emphasis on high-end consumer printers and mid- and high-end business devices – particularly expensive multi-function laser printers – than in 2021. Alongside price increases for mid- and high-end consumer and commercial products, these factors are largely responsible for the growth in revenues, which has been strong since Week 38. There has been something of a slowdown since Week 52, although both markets are still some way above the revenue trend index baseline.

Small and medium resellers had a strong end to 2022, and this continued into the first week of 2023, driven by business sales across public and private sectors as well as the price rises. We have seen a steady growth in the e-tailer channel since Week 40, highlighting the resurgence of consumer spend. Distributors have also worked hard, using promotions to shift entry-level stock.

 

Consumables in decline

By contrast, the consumables market declined significantly in Q4: down 18.2 YoY % in unit sales and 11.4% in revenues. That is far worse than CONTEXT’s pessimistic outlook of falls of 9.8% and 6.7%, respectively. A decrease in sales of the ink cartridges that make up over 80% of consumable sales in the region was the main reason but toner sales also fell sharply. Refillable ink bottles are gaining market share and interest in these can only increase throughout 2023 and beyond as they are more economical for consumers and will therefore appeal at a time of higher living costs. Subscription models are becoming more prominent, and since their primary route to market is direct, their value is not captured in distribution channel data.

The average number of pages printed also fell sharply in December (by 12% YoY) despite the return to the office. With paperless policies proliferating in the public and private sectors, this fall is likely to continue

 

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Infrastructure sales stay comfortably above past two years thanks to strong networking performance

London, 4 July 2023 – The enterprise networking segment continued to drive enterprise infrastructure sales through European distribution, increasing 49% year-on-year (YoY) in the four weeks to week 24, according to CONTEXT, the global IT market intelligence company.

The strong performance of the networking market is down to a 56% increase in revenue sales growth from the switching segment. This in turn was driven by changing product mix—with revenues for higher end switch appliances growing 61% YoY over the period—and average sales price (ASP) increases.

Although server revenue levels have dipped below 2021 and 2022 figures since week 17, the past four weeks has seen a positive increase of 16% versus the same period a year ago. Volumes declined slightly (-3%) YoY, illustrating that price increases are the main driver of revenue growth in this segment.

Enterprise storage recorded a poor performance: a -21% YoY revenue decline in week 24 in both traditional storage array and HCI categories.

Both storage and server markets have been hit by general macro-economic uncertainty impacting business purchasing decisions. However, in the enterprise networking space the renewed growth comes after a pandemic era when working from home meant delays to investments in switching infrastructure.

Country by country

As a whole, infrastructure revenue through European distribution is comfortably higher than the past two years thanks to the performance of the networking segment. Spain is one of the best performers at a national level; it is the only one of the top five regional economies to be growing positively in all three segments (servers, storage and networking). It recorded a 100% YoY revenue surge in server sales.

Italy also continues to perform solidly, despite a slump in server sales, thanks to networking revenue growth of 100% YoY in the period. As in Spain, EU funds are playing a significant role here. Germany experienced a more mixed result, with networking revenue sales growing 62% but infrastructure as a whole dragged down into negative territory by -31% storage sales growth. The UK continues to lag in terms of infrastructure investment, with strong declines in server and storage revenue growth and the lowest positive growth in networking.

When viewed against our Q2 forecast, enterprise networking is currently on a par with our most pessimistic scenario, thanks to lagging wireless investment. Both server and storage segments are trailing the pessimistic scenarios quite considerably, although they have recovered in recent weeks.

 

CONTEXT analytics, forecasts and data management solutions are embedded in the information systems of the world's major technology companies. CONTEXT processes over $200 billion of sales transactions every year for the global ITC Channel, with a team of more than 400 staff operating worldwide from London, Berlin, Paris, Madrid, Milan, Warsaw, Johannesburg, Istanbul, Dubai, Chicago, Buenos Aires, São Paulo, Mumbai, Auckland, Singapore, Seoul, Taipei and Tokyo.

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Mixed Results for Quarterly Global 3D Printer Shipments as Industry Attentions drawn to M&A

full content in research-updates/3d_printing page

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