CEE HCP Market Rises in Value

CEE HCP Market Rises in Value

Central and Eastern Europe HCP Market dipped in units but rises in value, according to IDC.

Shipments of hardcopy peripherals (HCP) to Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) rose in value but declined in units year on year in Q2 2019, according to research from International Data Corporation (IDC).

IDC’s Worldwide Quarterly Hardcopy Peripherals Tracker reports that 1.2 million units were shipped in CEE in Q2, a decline of 2.9% year on year. The shipments were valued at more than $387 million, which marked an 2.3% year-on-year increase.

The tracker found that inkjet shipments declined 7.6% in units but grew 5.5% year on year in value in Q2. Shipments of ink cartridge devices fell by more than 10%, while shipments of ink tank printers and multifunction peripherals (MFPs) were flat. The market value increase was driven by significant sales of devices in price bands above $300.

“As the share of ink tank devices continues to expand, we can expect intensifying competition between vendors in this market area,” says Michal Swiatek, a research manager at IDC CEMA.

The tracker indicates that the CEE laser market was flat in unit terms in Q2 but increased 2.1% in value year on year. Sales of monochrome lasers, especially cheaper entry-level models, declined, while sales of color laser devices increased.

Russia remained the largest HCP market in CEE, responsible for 39.9% of the units and 35.5% of the market’s value. Russia’s economic slowdown contributed to a 9.2% year-on-year contraction of the country’s unit share.

Second-ranked Poland held almost 20% of the market in both units and value. The Polish market declined 1.2% year on year in units but grew a robust 18.5% in value.

The third-ranked Czech Republic market grew 9.7% in units and 21.7% in value year on year, giving it an 8.7% market share. The strong performance was driven by sales of new HP Inc. mono laser devices. The vendor also won a Czech government tender to deliver color laser devices.

Among vendors, HP Inc. remains the overall leader in the CEE HCP market. The vendor’s shipments fell 3.9% year on year in Q2, resulting in a 42.8% unit share. Second-ranked Canon saw a 14.6% decline in shipments, resulting in a 15.5% unit share. Third-ranked Brother’s shipments increased by 3.1%, boosting the vendor’s share to 10.9%. Kyocera Document Solutions recorded healthy shipments growth of 9.1%, putting the vendor in fourth position.

Since the start of 2019, the overall CEE HCP market has fallen 4.7% in units but increased 2.0% in value year on year.

IDC tracks A2-A4 devices in the Quarterly Hardcopy Peripherals Tracker. Hardcopy Peripherals include single-function printers, MFPs, and single-function digital copiers (SF DC). Data for all vendors are reported for calendar periods.

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