*NEWS*DELL: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.

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February 22, 2006 at 9:10 AM