Global PC shipments grew by more than 12% in the first quarter, driven mostly by a strong demand for mobile computers, a market research firm said.Hewlett-Packard, Dell, and Acer held on to the top three rankings, respectively.

PC shipments rose to 69.9 million units from 62.4 million in the same period a year ago, iSuppli said. The first-quarter showing was better than expected because of the strength in mobile PC sales.

"However, the financial markets are still adjusting to the effects of the subprime mortgage crisis in the United States, as are the consumers and businesses who have had their financial positions impacted," iSuppli analyst Matthew Wilkins warned in a statement.

For the last five years, first-quarter PC shipments have grown by an average of 12%, making this quarter part of the norm, iSuppli said.

HP boosted shipments in the quarter by 23% over a year ago to reach 13.2 million units. It was the strongest percentage growth among the top 10 PC makers. HP's market share at the end of the quarter was 18.9%.

Dell increased shipments by 20% to nearly 9 million units, which drove a half of a percent rise in market share to 15.4%. Acer rounded out the top three rankings with a 10.5% boost in shipments to 6.8 million units, or 9.7% of the market.

With the recent acquisitions of Gateway and Packard Bell, Acer has distanced itself from its once close rival Lenovo, and is close to joining HP and Dell as the only computer makers to have more than a 10% market share, iSuppli said.

Lenovo and Toshiba were fourth and fifth, respectively, with a 6.9% and 4.4% market share. Lenovo increased shipments by 21.2% and Toshiba 20.3%.

By: DocMemory
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