A recent MacBook Air running M2 chip is seen displayed during Apple’s annual Worldwide Developers Conference in San Jose, California, June 6, 2022.
Peter Dasilva | Reuters
Apple’s worldwide computer shipments fell 40.5% yr over yr in the primary quarter of 2023, amid a broader contraction in consumer demand, according to research firm IDC.
All five of the biggest computer makers — Apple, ASUS, Dell, HP and Lenovo — saw double-digit drops in first-quarter shipments, reflecting weaker demand and chronic inventory woes. But Apple’s decline was the most important of the bunch.
Apple’s worldwide PC market share dropped between the primary quarter of 2022 and the primary quarter of 2023, from 8.6% to 7.2%, in line with IDC data. The corporate shipped 2.8 million fewer devices yr over yr in the primary quarter of 2023, in line with IDC.
It is not entirely unexpected. Apple Chief Financial Officer Luca Maestri said in February that Apple expected double-digit declines in Mac and iPad sales from the year-earlier period for the March quarter. Mac revenue fell 28.66% yr over yr in the course of the December quarter. Apple CEO Tim Cook said on the time that the difficult macroeconomic environment affected iPhone, Mac and Apple Watch sales.
Apple shares closed down over 1.5% Monday.
“The preliminary results also represented a coda to the era of COVID-driven demand and at the least a brief return to pre-COVID patterns,” IDC said.
“Even with heavy discounting, channels and PC makers can expect elevated inventory to persist into the center of the yr and potentially into the third quarter,” IDC researcher Jitesh Ubrani said within the report.
PC manufacturers will suffer within the near term, the IDC report said, with growth expected to choose back up by year-end.
There’s potential upside for PC manufacturers, IDC said. Weakened demand gives corporations a probability to complete “rejigging their plans” and iron out supply chain kinks. That respiratory space shall be quite helpful to corporations comparable to Apple, which has began to push suppliers and assemblers to maneuver their operations beyond China.
An Apple spokesperson wasn’t immediately available for comment.
Apple will report its March quarter earnings May 4.
Correction: Apple’s worldwide PC market share dropped from 8.6% to 7.2% between the primary quarter of 2022 and the primary quarter of 2023, in line with IDC data. A previous version misstated the share change.
