Lenovo expects to beat Dell in PC sales by year's end

IDG News Service - Lenovo's chairman believes the company will overtake Dell to become the world's second-largest PC vendor by the end of this year.

Lenovo chairman Liu Chuanzhi made the remarks Thursday while speaking to the Chinese news media. A Lenovo spokeswoman confirmed he made the comments.

In the previous quarter, the Chinese PC maker edged out rival Acer to take the third spot for global PC sales, according to research firm IDC. Lenovo's market share was at 12.2%, putting the company right behind Dell, which had a 12.9% share. Top-ranked HP had an 18.1% share.

Lenovo's chairman made the claim as the company has seen the fastest growth among the world's top five PC vendors. In the last quarter, the company's PC sales increased by 22.9% year-over-year. In comparison, Dell's PC sales only grew by 2.8%.

Analysts have said PC shipments have declined because of sluggish spending due to broader economic conditions, and because the popularity of tablets has eaten into PC sales. Lenovo, however, has put its fast growth down to expanding into developing markets in Latin America, Africa and India, while also protecting its home turf in China, where it has a 31.7% share.

Last quarter, China also overtook the U.S. in PC sales and shipments, according to IDC. While the U.S. is expected to reclaim the top spot later this year, China will become the biggest PC market throughout 2012.