TAIPEI -- Compal Electronics has raised its forecast for annual notebook PC sales, citing higher-than-expected demand in the West.

Shipments may surpass 36 million notebooks this year, 2.8% more than the contract PC maker's previous forecast of 35 million, CFO Gary Lu said, reported Bloomberg.

The higher forecast is based on demand from Europe and back-to-school sales. Compal shipped a total of 10.6 million notebooks in the third quarter, up 31% sequentially. It forecast a 10% sequential gain in the fourth quarter.

The consensus analyst third-quarter forecast for the company is for a 12% hike in profits to $121 million.

Compal builds PCs for Acer and H-P, among others.