Hardcopy Peripheral Shipments Saw Double-Digit Growth in 2Q21

The worldwide hardcopy peripherals market expanded for the fourth quarter in a row in the second quarter of 2021, according to IDC. Shipments grew 13.4% year over year to nearly 22.9 million units. Shipment value also increased during the quarter with year-over-year growth of 31.2% to $10.2 billion signaling the return to office.

Inkjet vendors continued to record high shipments to cater to ongoing demand and to fill order backlogs. The Laser market also saw year-over-year growth, another sign that the return to office is underway. Seven out of nine regional markets witnessed year-over-year expansion in unit shipments. Similar to last quarter, the common theme for this quarter is that growth was driven by increased demand for low-end devices.

HP and Epson grew 11.7% and 57.1% year over year, respectively while Canon declined 5.9% due to semiconductor shortages and stock issues. As with Canon, Brother also experienced significant challenges regarding production and stock availability causing it to contract 4.9% year over year. Lenovo lost 17.9% compared with the same period last year.