Springboard Research, a leading innovator in the IT Market Research industry, today announced that Pakistan PC/Server shipments grew 19.1% in Q1 2006 to 128,729 compared to the same quarter of previous year. Government spending picked up again in the quarter after slowing down in Q4 2005 due to the October 8 earthquake. Government PC shipments registered growth of 35.3% as compared to Q4 2005 and continued to be the biggest buyer of computers with a 22.4% share.
The Pakistan government continues to focus on increasing IT awareness and penetration in the country. Moreover, improved infrastructure, bandwidth connectivity, and telecommunications have accelerated the momentum in the IT market. The trend of increased PC purchases by households in smaller towns and cities as witnessed over the past several quarters, continued to be steadfast in Q1, 2006. In addition, the favourable developments in the South East Asia region will also have a positive affect on the economy of Pakistan.
"PC/Server consumption in the country continues to be dominated by the government and large corporate sectors such as manufacturing, telecom, banking and financial services, and IT-enabled services," said Rehan Ghazi, Pakistan Market Analyst, Springboard Research. The growing trend of automation in the local industry, both in the public and private sectors generated substantial business opportunities for MNCs and local players in the same period. Aggressive pricing by the PC vendors also helped improving the PC penetration, especially in the households and the SMB segments."
Among all the product segments, the portable segment experienced the highest growth of 22.4% year-to-year. The high growth in the portable market is mainly attributed to reduced prices and high consumption by the corporate sector, IT companies, financial institutions and government bodies.
HP led the market with 5.2% share of total desktop shipments in Q1 2006, followed by Lenovo and Dell. The import of second hand computers, piracy and a lack of proper training of IT professionals are some of the major hurdles that continue to affect the strength of the growth of branded PCs in Pakistan.
The government's preferential treatment toward local vendors for IT procurement appears to be working towards local industry growth. In-box and Raffles, two local brands, ranked 5th and 6th respectively in Q1 with a total desktop market share of more than 5%.
"With strong economic indicators and a strengthening IT landscape, we expect the PC/Server market to gain momentum in 2006. Our outlook on the country remains optimistic and we expect the market to generate 25% growth in unit shipments in 2006 and maintain a level exceeding 20% in 2007 and 2008," noted Dane Anderson, Vice President, Springboard Research. "The new fiscal budget for FY07 is scheduled to be declared in June 2006, and we expect to see an increase in government IT-related spending due to the continuous automation of both local and national level authorities," he added.
About the Asia Emerging Countries Tracker
Asia Emerging Countries Tracker is a Springboard Research service that tracks PC/Server market developments in Bangladesh, Brunei, Cambodia, Sri Lanka and Pakistan on a quarterly basis. The methodology employed for this service leverages interviews with IT resellers, vendors, component suppliers and end-users at the local and regional level.
About Springboard Research
Springboard Research represents value, integrity and insight. Lead by a team of dynamic industry experts, Springboard Research provides its customers with high value IT market research that helps them identify new market opportunities, growth engines, and innovative ways to go to market, which means Springboard's customers lead rather than follow market trends. Not bound by legacy, Springboard's cutting-edge research model leverages its offshore research centers, the Internet, and an increased use of technology as engines of innovation to deliver unique research value. This means that customers have a real alternative for IT market research and where knowledge is delivered in more useable and interactive formats. Springboard Research works with the largest IT companies in the world across the hardware, software, networking, and services sectors.
Founded in 2004, Springboard Research serves the needs of its clients globally through offices in the United States, Singapore and Japan as well as global research centers in India and Pakistan.
For more information regarding Springboard Research, please visit www.springboardresearch.com.
Contacts
Chris Perrine
Vice President -- Business Development
Springboard Research
65-6236-7681
cperrine@springboardresearch.com
Dane Anderson
Vice President -- Research
Springboard Research
65 6236-7682
danderson@springboardresearch.com
Rehan Ghazi
92-51-7116322
Market Analyst, Pakistan
Springboard Research
rghazi@springboardresearch.com