Analyst: PC OEM orders weaker than in the past

An analyst claims in a new note to investors that his examination of PC OEM makers in Asia shows that their orders of PCs in October, the launch month of Windows 8, are weaker than in previous years.

We have heard unofficial reports that sales of Windows 8 have been slower than predicted, both from unnamed sources in Microsoft and from retailer Newegg.com. Now, an analyst claims that he has checked into the orders of PC makers for the month of October and found that they are weaker than in the past.

PCWorld.com reports the Brian White of Topeka Capital Markets, used what he called his ODM (original device manufacture) Barometer to check on sales of PCs from companies that actually make the products for companies like HP and Dell. He stated:

With all of the sales numbers out for our ODM Barometer, October sales rose by 2 percent month-over-month and below the average performance of up 5 percent over the past seven years. This is weaker than our preliminary estimate of up 5 percent month-over-month in October and speaks to the continued challenges in the PC market.

The ODM Barometer also showed a year-over-year decrease of 13 percent in October, according to White. He added, "This weakness is unusual given that PCs with Windows 8 and new ultrabook products are ramping."

While PC sales to consumers will still be higher in October compared to a year ago, White did say they will be "much lower than the PC makers originally expected a few months ago.”

Source: PCWorld.com | Image via Microsoft