Johannesburg, 26 Aug 2003
The strengthening of the rand against major currencies by more than 40% over the past year has resulted in the prices of PCs falling significantly during this period.
However, according to Mark Lu, CEO of Rectron, there is more to come.
"There is no doubt that margins can be squeezed even further. With the generic price of PC components falling, and chip and memory performance increases announced on a regular basis, the PC market is poised for an influx of even cheaper, high performance products," he says.
Lu`s comments come against the backdrop of price reductions by rivals Dell and HP, which reported a loss in its PC business after slashing prices too aggressively, according to reports.
"With a number of vendors using direct-to-customer sales methods to undercut competition, it is significant that, at Rectron, we have matched or beaten the price cuts of our competitors while maintaining support for our proven channel marketing model," he stresses.
Turning to the laptop market, Lu predicts a "free-for-all" as prices tumble. "Competition in this sector is rife and the market is in danger of overheating as vendors, distributors and resellers rush to cash in on the predicted Christmas buying spree," he warns.
"Customers should be mindful of brand strength, specification currency and bundled software options before making a purchase decision," he adds.
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