Wednesday, February 11, 2009

Report: Worldwide PC Microprocessor Market Plunges

Bad news for the microprocessor industry: industry analyst IDC is reporting this morning that worldwide PC microprocessor shipments saw a "precipitous decline" in Q4 of 2008, and things are expected to get worse through the first half of the year. According to IDC, it sees a "very poor outlook" on the industry for the first half of the year, after a -17.0% quarter over quarter decline in worldwide PC processor unit shipments in Q4. Those shipments reflected a -18.0% decline in revenues from the prior quarter, and -22.2% year over year. IDC said in a statement that the decline in PC processor unit shipments was "the worst sequential decline since IDC started tracking processor shipments in 1996."