According to the Hong Kong daily South China Morning Post, global PC sales contracted by 29% during the first quarter of 2023, returning to levels of the beginning of 2019. It is a very harsh regression, and if we look only at Mac computers, the drop is 40.5%. This decrease even exceeds that experienced by Lenovo, Dell and Asus, which reduced their sales by nearly 30%.
The huge reduction in the number of orders is having major ramifications throughout the electronics industry. Samsung, for example, has been forced to cut production of memory chips to free up current stock, joining others like SK Hynix and Micron, while Intel and AMD are also implementing their own inventory reduction measures to lubricate the launch of its new processors.
For Apple, however, this decline poses a curious opportunity. The company has the waist that confers years of record sales and benefits that are difficult to imagine, so the reduction in sales (and therefore the slowdown of its factories) will allow it to undertake important reforms in the production chain. For a few years Apple has wanted to reduce its dependence on China, and IDC points out that it would be one of the manufacturers that could take the opportunity to “explore” opportunities in other countries less affected by the tensions between Washington and Beijing, which could endanger your supply chain.
According to IDC believes, by 2024 the sales of computer equipment will recover the pulse due to the aging of the current park and an economy that will grow again. All in all, these projections should be taken with some caution considering the current instability.
