TAIPEI – Second quarter global notebook shipments increased 3.6% year-over-year and 5.7% sequentially, totaling 39.96 million units, says TrendForce.

Biddings for notebook contracts in North America and market arrivals of new product models were the main driving forces. First-half 2017 strong demand from North America contributed to a global shipment result that exceeded the market expectations, according to the research firm.

Market experts predict shipments in the second half might be comparatively weak.

“Nonetheless, the third-quarter notebook shipments are projected to increase by another 3% to 5% versus the prior quarter,” said Kou-Han Tseng, TrendForce’s notebook analyst.

HP raised its annual notebook shipment target nearly 10% in the second quarter and is expected to step up efforts in the third quarter.
Lenovo also will be focusing on the year’s second half to compensate for not having a clear notebook sales strategy during the first half, says TrendForce.

TrendForce has revised its estimation of shipments for the year. The annual decline initially projected in the range from 2% to 4% has been narrowed to within 2%.

HP retained first place in the shipment ranking for five consecutive quarters. In the second quarter, HP capitalized on getting contract bids for notebooks in North America and tapped into the demand related to back-to-school sales. HP widened its lead over second-place Lenovo by growing its shipments 8.5% from the first quarter to reach a total of 9.35 million units.

Lenovo shipped 8.05 million units in the second quarter, representing a year-over-year drop of 2.4%. The notebook market was relatively much slower in the Asia-Pacific region.

Dell took third place in the global ranking, with its second-quarter increasing 21.3% sequentially and 7.4% versus the same quarter a year ago. Successes responding to North American tenders and growth in its Chromebook shipments allowed Dell to securely hold on to the third
spot.

With sequential growth of 17.1%, Apple narrowed its distance with Asus, while Acer stayed in sixth place. Asus’s strategy in the recent years has been about selling higher-priced premium notebooks rather than increasing shipments. Hence, the brand focuses on promoting high-end notebooks featuring displays with resolutions at FHD and higher. Currently, the shipment share of FHD and higher resolution notebooks for Asus is above 40%, which is higher than HP’s and Lenovo’s. Owing to the releases of new products, Asus’s notebook shipments for the second quarter grew 9.3% sequentially to 3.99 million units, allowing the brand to retain fourth place in the ranking.

Apple trailed closely behind Asus in fifth place in the second quarter. The updated 12" MacBook helped expanded MacBook shipments by 17.1% from the first quarter to 3.98 million units. TrendForce also anticipates double-digit sequential growth for third-quarter MacBook shipments, as Apple will focus on the MacBook Pro series during the year’s second half.

While Acer continues to expand aggressively in the Chromebook market, it is facing a growing number of competitors. In the second quarter, new Chromebook models from US brands took market shares away from Acer, causing its notebook shipments to drop 3.5% from the first quarter to 3.22 million units. Acer remained in sixth place in the global ranking.

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