Notebook shipments up 6.4% MoM to 14 million in May 2014

Notebook shipments reached approximately 14 million in May 2014, up 6.4% on month and up 9% on year. Distributors’ strong stock up demands for new models including low priced US $249 Microsoft notebooks acted as a major growth momentum, according to WitsView, a subsidiary of Taiwan-based market intelligence firm TrendForce.

Hewlett-Packard (HP) saw strong 50% shipment growth in May as the company performed well in the tenders market. Meanwhile, Toshiba’s monthly shipment growth set new record of 18% breaking the 1 million mark. Dell and Apple, however, saw their notebook shipments drop 17% and 33% in the same month respectively, mainly because of higher shipment base periods in April 2014. The outlook for June notebook shipment volumes this year is expected to grow 9-11% spurred by summer sales stock up demands, and tightened panel supply in May that have caused delays throughout the entire production line.

Chen further pointed out that notebook shipments from Jan.-May 2014 was up 5% on year to reach 64.5 million units, as economies across the globe improve and consumers are becoming more aware of the distinction between notebook and tablet capabilities.

Notebook shipments are expected to grow 9-11% in June, projected WitsView, adding overall shipment decline in 2014 will narrow down to 0.7% on year to 168 million units. The research organization did not rule out the possibility of notebook shipments making a turn around.

Photo: Notebook shipment market share by vendor