Global Notebook Shipments Grew by 10.2% QoQ in 2Q18; Apple Retreated to Sixth Place in Market Share Ranking

The worldwide notebook shipments in 2Q18 grew above expectations by 10.2% QoQ and 2.8% YoY to 41.08 million units, according to the global market research firm TrendForce. Looking ahead to 3Q18, the traditional sales season and orders related to commercial tenders will drive demand growth in the notebook market with total shipments estimated to advance by 5-6% QoQ.

However, the third-quarter notebook shipments will also be affected by issues with the supply of key components. Kou-Han Tseng, TrendForce notebook analyst, points that the tight supply problem has shifted from passive components to CPUs. “Shipments of Intel’s new CPU may be delayed to the end of the third quarter, and inventories of older CPUs have been much depleted by the earlier stock-up activities,” said Tseng. “Alerts about the low level of CPU inventory have already been made this August.”

Hence, TrendForce from a conservative stance has revised the projection of this year’s total notebook shipments and now forecasts a YoY decline of 0.2%. Although the shipment outlook for 3Q18 is positive growth like the previous quarter due to the rise in demand, the supply of CPU remains a hidden concern.

Market share of US brands continues to expand and Dell posts huge results ahead of its listing at the year’s end

HP again topped the shipment/market share ranking of notebook brands for 2Q18. The brand has benefited from the strong demand in the commercial tender market as well as growth in shipments of its Chromebooks and consumer notebooks. HP’s shipments rose by 19.7% QoQ to 10.77 million units, accounting for 26.2% of the global market.

Lenovo stayed at second place in the ranking because of its solid performance in the year’s first half. While the brand’s shipments grew by 3.8% QoQ to 8.2 million units in 2Q18, large gains by US competitors caused its market share to drop from 21.2% in 1Q18 to 20% in 2Q18.

Dell’s notebook shipments surged by around 30% QoQ to 8.05 million units in 2Q18. This impressive result is consistent with the rumors that Dell is working hard to raise its business revenues ahead of its return to public trading at the end of this year. Despite the headwinds of the off season, Dell was able to raise its notebook shipments with the demand from the commercial tender market and expand its global market share to 19.6% in 2Q18, an increase of three percentage points from 16.6% in 1Q18. Firmly holding on to third place in the ranking, the brand now trails closely behind Lenovo.

Acer jumped to fourth place in the ranking whereas Apple fell to sixth

There was a significant reshuffling of the ranking from the fourth to sixth place. Acer climbed from sixth to fourth with its market share rising to 8%. Acer’s gain was attributed to the additional shipments that were originally set for the first quarter but then delayed and later delivered in the second quarter. ASUS fell to fifth in 2Q18 with its market share at 7.4%. ASUS’s performance in the notebook market in 2Q18 was negatively affected by the leftover inventory from the previous quarter. Apple also retreated to sixth with its market share sliding to 6.5%. The second quarter was the transition period when Apple was preparing for the releases of the upcoming new MacBook devices for the year. TrendForce therefore expects MacBook shipments to again post a large QoQ increase in 3Q18, as Apple already released a new MacBook Pro at the start of the quarter and will release a new MacBook Air at the end of the quarter.