(Nikkei BP Group)
(No.1 High-Tech News Site in Japanese)
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| Japan's PC Shipments in Oct.-Dec. Rise 16 Pct., JEIDA Says
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February 11, 1999 (TOKYO) -- The Japan Electronic Industry Development
Association (JEIDA) announced that 1.85 million personal computers were
shipped in Japan in the October-December quarter of 1998, for a year-on-year
increase of 16 percent.
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The total number of shipments, including those for export, during the
October-December quarter registered 2,051,000 units, or 5 percent higher
on a year-on-year basis, according to JEIDA. And the total value of
shipments, including PC peripherals, reached 658.3 billion yen (US$5.79
billion), up 5 percent, of which 488.8 billion yen (US$4.3 billion),
up 16 percent, was in the form of domestic shipments.
"Japan's PC market is recovering steadily, and although IT investment
by corporations remains sluggish, consumer demand has propelled the
PC market with a great force," said Tetsuya Mizoguchi, senior vice president
of Toshiba Corp.
Mizoguchi chairs JEIDA's personal computer promotion committee.
Of the 1.85 million units shipped in the quarter, server/desktop computers
comprised 996,000 units while portable PCs such as notebooks comprised
856,000 units. The ratio of portable PCs to the total is 46 percent,
or 2 percentage points less than the 48 percent in the July-September
quarter, the association noted.
JEIDA said this trend is due to the widening choices for customers, including
an increase in the selection of space-saving desktop PCs with liquid
crystal display (LCD) monitors.
"The ratio of portable PCs has been increasing steadily, and it will
approach 50 percent in 1999, Mizoguchi said.
The average shipment unit cost for the Japanese market was 213,000 yen
(US$1,875), continuing a downward trend for the sixth straight quarter.
In the July-September quarter of 1998, the average shipment unit cost
was 219,000 yen (US$1,930).
Also, the average shipment unit cost for server/desktop PCs was 200,000
yen (US$1,760) and that for portable PCs was 227,000 yen (US$2,000).
The figures for the July-September period were 205,000 yen and 234,000
yen, respectively. The average shipment unit cost for server/desktop
PCs declined for two straight quarters.
JEIDA also disclosed PC shipments for calendar 1998. The total shipments
registered 7,851,000, for a decrease of 5 percent compared to 1997,
and in terms of value the shipments registered 2,578.3 billion yen (US$22.7
billion), for a 9 percent decrease. Domestic shipments accounted for
7,016,000 units and 1,937.9 billion yen (US$17 billion), for a decrease
of 9 percent. In volume terms, 1998 shipments leveled off as compared
with the year-earlier shipments.
"The consumer market is growing faster than we had expected, and shipments
of 7.2 million units can be achieved for fiscal 1998," Mizoguchi noted.
In November 1998, JEIDA projected that PC shipments for the full fiscal
year through March 1999 would reach 7.2 million units. In order to achieve
that number, shipments for the last quarter (January-March 1999) must
exceed 2,078,000 units, which appears to be viable.
The survey is based on data submitted by major PC manufacturers in Japan
including foreign-based companies, and it is compiled by JEIDA. A total
of 20 manufacturers participated, according to the association, covering
92 percent of Japan's PC market.
Related stories:
Japan's PC Shipments Rise in July-Sept. Period
Japan's 1998 PC Shipments Fall 0.9 Pct., Dataquest Says
(BizTech News Dept.)
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