Notebook Makers Troubled by Dropping Demand and CPU Shortage

Last week, it was revealed that the high demand for 32nm central processors had pushed Intel into a position where it could no longer manage to meet orders, because it no longer had enough CPU on hand. This occurred because demand was unexpectedly high during a period usually known as the slow season. On the other hand, certain PC makers are faced with an even greater dilemma now that the possibility of sales stagnating during the third quarter has arisen.

Certain notebook makers are concerned that demand in Europe may not grow during the third quarter. This period is usually known as the so-called “peak season.” After the unusual behavior of the market during the past quarter, however, laptop manufacturers are considering the possibility of the peak season behaving inconsistently as well.

Normally, PC players would decide to reduce their inventories. On the other hand, the shortage of 32nm Intel chips (including Core i3-330M, Core i3-350M and Core i5-430M) is causing quotes to rise quickly. As such, they have a reason to be concerned about possible future shortages of their own.

Basically, these companies have just as much reason to stock up on chips as they do for wanting to reduce their stocks. There is also the possibility that concerns about low demand in Europe may turn out to be unfounded.

“Since future demand in Europe is currently uncertain, most makers are already considering reducing their inventory preparations, but with concerns that the Europe issue may turn out to be fine, the makers are maintaining their Intel CPU orders to avoid shortages of the critical component, sources from notebook players noted,” a report published by Digitimes states. “The makers are also keeping a close eye on demand from Europe and are being more careful with their inventory management to prevent overstocked CPU inventories, the sources noted.”