IDC Sees High Growth in China’s Printer Market

According to IDC’s latest report, shipment of inkjet and laser printers (exclusive of multifunction devices) in China reached about 1.19 million units in January and February 2014, up 32% compared to the same period of 2013.

IDC noted low-speed monochrome devices saw stable growth during the first two months of the year and remained dominant in the market. The monochrome products with speeds of 1 to 20 ppm represent a 56% share of the entire market. Another feature of the market is that more products now support mobile printing. Of all printers, 4.9% support Google Cloud, 8.6% Apple AirPrint, and 8.4% wireless printing, IDC reports.

The analyst opines that the swell of the market is driven by two major factors. First, home users, particularly student users, have a greater demand for printers, especially inkjet products and low-speed monochrome laser products; second, printer procurement by enterprises and industrial users, including finance, medical and telecommunication sectors, has increased for upgraded products.

Finally, IDC believes shipments in the first quarter of 2014 will increase 15.7% year-over-year, with 2.34 million unit sales forecast.