DELL TO OVERTAKE HP & LENOVO IN ASIA ?

[Anonymous]

Dell Expects to Overtake H-P, Lenovo in Asian Sales
Feb.06–
Dell Inc. expects to overtake Hewlett-Packard Co. and Lenovo Group
Ltd., its two closest rivals in Asia, in the next few years, helped by
demand for notebook computers.
“We’re
on the path to target to be number one in Asia,” Dell Asia Pacific
President Steve Felice, 48, said in an interview in Singapore today.
“We’re almost virtually tied for number two” with Hewlett-Packard.
Dell,
the world’s biggest maker of personal computers, is expanding in Asia
and counting on notebook PCs, server computers, storage devices and
printers to help the company meet a goal of $80 billion in annual
sales. Round Rock, Texas-based Dell is considering possible sites in
India for a factory, which will be its third in Asia after China and
Malaysia.
“There’s plenty of room to grow servers, storage and
notebooks,” Felice said. “There’s a natural shift from desktops to
notebooks and there’s very strong demand.”
Felice said Dell’s sales
in Asia contributed 12 percent to the company’s revenue in the fourth
quarter ended Feb. 3. The Asian sales rose 21 percent, led by China and
India.
“It’s the fastest rate of growth within Dell and that’s going to continue,” he said.
Dell
yesterday reported fourth-quarter profit rose 52 percent to $1.01
billion from $667 million a year earlier as PC shipments picked up
during the holidays. Sales gained 13 percent to $15.2 billion, the
first time in three quarters the company beat its forecast.
Shares
of Dell fell 0.8 percent to $31.69 in extended trading in the U.S.,
after the company forecast quarterly profit and sales that trailed some
analysts’ estimates.
Forecast
Dell said first-quarter profit,
excluding some items, will be 39 cents to 41 cents a share on sales of
$14.2 billion to $14.6 billion. Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. analyst
Toni Sacconaghi, the top ranked computer analyst by Institutional
Investor magazine, expects 42 cents a share in profit on sales of $14.7
billion.
Dell had a 10 percent share of PC sales in Asia including
Japan in the three months ended Feb. 3, placing the company behind
Lenovo and Hewlett-Packard, Felice said.
“We always respect healthy
competition in the market place,” said Daphne Chern, a Singapore-based
spokeswoman for Hewlett-Packard’s Asia operations. “H-P has a very
strong market share in Asia Pacific.”
Lenovo’s Singapore-based spokeswoman for Asia, Geraldine Kan, declined comment.
Asian Market
Dell’s
share of PC sales in Asia excluding Japan was 7.4 percent in 2005, up
from 6.7 percent the year before, Stamford, Connecticut-based
researcher Gartner Inc. said on Feb. 15. The company’s share in Asia
trailed the 18.7 percent for Lenovo and Hewlett-Packard’s 10.6 percent,
according to Gartner.
Palo Alto, California-based Hewlett-Packard is
the world’s second-biggest personal-computer seller, followed by
Lenovo, based in Purchase, New York.
Lenovo hired William Amelio,
Dell’s former president for Asia Pacific and Japan, in December to help
the company, which is seeking to displace Dell as the global market
leader.
Amelio’s departure hasn’t changed the company’s plans for
Asia, said Felice, who took on his present position in July 2005
alongside Amelio. Felice was previously vice president, corporate
business group, for Dell’s Americas region.
Dell expects to “add substantially” to its 10,000 employees in Asia, Felice said, declining to provide specifics.
The
company is discussing possible factory sites in India, Chief Executive
Officer Kevin Rollins said in New Delhi on Jan. 30. Dell plans to start
manufacturing a range of products in India within the next few years,
Felice said.

[Author]

February 22, 2006 at 9:11 AM