Annual figures from the analyst show that the country’s printer sales bounced back from a fall in the first quarter to a half year total of 415,053 units sold.
Whilst this figure is a drop from 2010 figures, which reached 421,472, the contraction of approximately 1.5 percent was due to a weak demand for inkjet printers in the region. Laser printer sales grew sharply by 31.3 percent year-on-year, whilst inkjet shipments fell by 7.3 percent in the same period, despite holding the majority of the market with a share of 78.4 percent.
Inkjet sales fell below 200,000 units for the first time in three years to 194,814 units sold, whilst inkjet shipments overall fell by 48.8 year-on-year. Copiers were the only device that recorded a significant improvement, with 50 percent year-on-year growth.
Laser printers are expected to maintain strong growth and eventually earn a 10 percent share in the market. Much of the growth has been cited as due to OEM expansions in the region, with the market analyst predicting a 3.1 percent increase in sales to 910,000 units by the end of 2011.
Pamela Sumanga, Market Analyst for HCP research at IDC Philippines, said: “While there was an uncharacteristic sequential growth in the second quarter of the year, which is historically a lean season for HCP, such development proved to be insufficient in pushing the market at a higher year-on-year level.”