Hardcopy Peripherals Shipments Decreased 17.6 Percent in 1Q24

Worldwide shipments of hardcopy peripherals declined 17.6% year over year to 18.8 million units in the first quarter of 2024. Shipment value also contracted 15.6% year over year during the quarter to $9.3 billion, according to IDC.

The three largest regional markets saw annual declines in unit shipments, ranging from 19.9% to 18.2%. One of the reasons for the contractions was that the same period last year had a higher base leading to less favorable year-over-year comparisons. In addition, vendors have restricted shipments to address reduced profitability, following recent periods of price reductions and high channel inventory.

While all of the top 5 vendors (HP, Epson, Canon, Brother, and Pantum) experienced year-over-year contractions, Brother saw the smallest decline of 8.0%. Brother recorded year-over-year growth in the Asia/Pacific region (excluding Japan and China) thanks to its ability to increase its shipments of Ink Tank models through recruitment of B2B-centered channels.