Contact Information: GTDC MEDIA CONTACTS: Chuck Miller (727) 939-1562
IT Market Momentum Continues; U.S. Sales Recovery Tracking Ahead of Europe, Distribution Association Says
| Source: Global Technology Distribution Council
ST. PETERSBURG, FL--(Marketwire - December 1, 2009) - Signs of IT market recovery continue to
be evident in the U.S. and Europe based on recent quarterly sales tracking
of the technology distribution industry, according to the Global Technology
Distribution Council (GTDC), the world's largest consortium of IT
distributors. Although industry conditions have improved, revenue levels
are still significantly below comparable periods last year in both the U.S.
and Europe. In Europe, the small-and-mid-size-business market has shown
stability and improvement in recent weeks, especially in comparison to the
larger enterprise market, which GTDC members are not surprised to see as
slower in recovery and not yet improving.
GTDC member sales, which represent more than $100 billion in annual
worldwide revenue, are tracked via independent research firms, The NPD
Group's Distributor Track® in the U.S., and Context SalesWatch in Europe.
Both databases, which are available by subscription, show third-quarter
sales of 2009 improved over the second quarter -- up 10.7% in the U.S. and
2.3% in Europe, the first time both regional tracking services have shown
sequential quarterly improvement since the IT downturn worsened at the end
of 2008. U.S. Distributor Track sales in the second quarter also improved
by approximately 4% over the first quarter in this region -- and recently
reached the $1 billion mark in a single week, which had not been achieved
in over a year.
"We can't declare that we're out of the woods yet," GTDC CEO Tim Curran
cautioned. "The tech industry will take time to crank back up to the levels
it has achieved in previous years. We're still very encouraged by the
current positive sales trends in distribution, particularly in the SMB
space, and we have every reason to expect continued improvement on through
2010."
The GTDC sees mobile solutions, cloud computing, security, storage,
point-of-sale, wireless networking and other communications technologies as
drivers of industry recovery. Emerging companies in the IT industry are now
moving more of their products through distribution, and industry leaders
are further diversifying their offerings to capitalize on shifting demand
trends.
"IT distributors have a front-lines perspective on market developments,"
Curran pointed out. "The NPD and Context databases that aggregate
distributor sales also capture pricing information as well as other key
indicators by channel. Such insight based on actual sales is far more
reliable compared to market research surveys and estimates."
For more information on the GTDC and IT distribution industry research,
visit http://gtdc.org/research.htm.
ABOUT THE GLOBAL TECHNOLOGY DISTRIBUTION COUNCIL
The Global Technology Distribution Council (GTDC) is a worldwide industry
association dedicated to defining and promoting the role of wholesale
distribution in a successful and healthy information technology channel.
The Council is comprised of the computer industry's top wholesale
distributors dedicated to serving "the channel," a network of skilled
value-added resellers and retail stores focused on providing hardware,
software, and services to businesses and consumers around the globe. GTDC
members include ABC Data, AB SA (WSE : ABPL ), Actebis, Arrow Electronics
(NYSE : ARW ), Avnet (NYSE : AVT ), Bell Micro (OTCBB : BELM ), Computer Gross,
Computerlinks, DCC SerCom, D&H, Esprinet (ISE : PRT ), Ingram Micro (NYSE : IM ), Intcomex, Magirus AG, Redington, ScanSource (NASDAQ : SCSC ), SiS
Technologies (HKSE : 0529 ), Synnex (NYSE : SNX ), 20:20 Mobile Group, SiS,
Tech Data (NASDAQ : TECD ), Westcoast LTD and Westcon.