Color Laser Devices Grow in Africa

IDC revealed that the African hardcopy peripherals (HCP) market fell in the second quarter of 2014 (2Q2014), with 1.6% and 2.8% decreases in volume and value, respectively. In 2Q2014, 280,000 units of inkjet devices were shipped, down 0.7% year on year (YoY). The shipment value is $27 million—up 4.9% YoY—driven by the strong growth of devices priced above $400. These are mostly due to the introduction of HP’s Officejet ProX Series and Brother’s MFC-J6910DW devices.

The monochrome laser market fell 4.6% YoY in volume to almost 265,000 units. Valued at $132.5 million, revenue dropped 2.6% YoY. IDC noted the decline in the 1–20 ppm speed segment was the fundamental reason for the overall decline in the mono laser market, with all other speed segments showing year-on-year growth.

Color laser devices grew 12.5% YoY to total just under 48,000 units. However, the market’s value declined 6.4% YoY to $68.8 million as increased competition forced a decrease in prices, a trend that IDC analysts expect will continue as the market for color devices grows.

Regionally speaking, South Africa, Egypt, and Nigeria registered strong recovery in shipments, but the remaining markets all came under considerable inventory pressure after experiencing a particularly strong 1Q2014. Moreover, tender activities within the government sector, coupled with growth in the SMB segment, were the main drivers for growth in South Africa and Nigeria.

“Despite a push by vendors to offer competitive prices, products imported via unofficial channels remain a threat, particularly in markets with less developed channels,” says Ashwin Venkatchari, Senior Program Manager for imaging, printing, and document solutions at IDC Middle East, Turkey, and Africa. “However, IDC believes that despite the small decline seen in 2Q2014, Africa will continue to offer strong growth potential across all hardcopy technologies going forward. HCP shipments will initially be driven by the implementation of large infrastructure projects across the continent and will be further boosted by the growing SMB segment.”