Personal computer global shipments at highest since 2012

Global shipments of personal computers in 2021 hit their highest level since 2012, with Chinese tech titan Lenovo Group Ltd retaining its hold on the top spot, a report from market research company International Data Corp said.

Total PC shipments during 2021 reached 348.8 million units, up 14.8 percent from 2020. This represents the highest level of shipments the PC market has seen since 2012, IDC said.

"2021 has truly been a return to form for the PC," said Jitesh Ubrani, research manager for IDC's Mobile and Consumer Device Trackers. "Consumer need for PCs in emerging markets and global commercial demand remained strong during the quarter with supply being a gating factor. While consumer and educational demand has tapered in some developed markets, we continue to believe the overall PC market has reset at a much higher level than before the pandemic."

Lenovo shipped more than 81.9 million units of PCs in 2021, marking a 14.1 percent year-on-year increase. It now accounts for 23.5 percent of the global PC market, followed by HP, Dell and Apple, data from IDC showed.