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IDC predicts harder times ahead |
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Monday, 09 March 2009 00:00 |
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IDC's latest update on information technology (IT) spending in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa reveals a bleaker outlook for the near term in the wake of the worldwide financial crisis. Growth of just under 3% is now expected for the EMEA IT market in 2009, which represents a 1.5-point drop compared to IDC's previous, pre-crisis forecast.
The downturn in the world economy is affecting demand for IT in both mature and emerging markets in EMEA, albeit somewhat differently. While IT spending in Western Europe will fall to just 1.2%, reflecting a sharp decline in capital investment with a contraction in GDP, the regions of Central and Eastern Europe and Middle East/Africa will continue to illustrate relatively healthy growth rates. "The IT market in Western Europe has moved into a phase of very sluggish growth for the foreseeable future," said Marcel Warmerdam, research director, European IT Markets, and responsible for EMEA IT market research. "Many IT users are already resetting priorities in view of tougher times, with many projects being postponed or cancelled."
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