Sales of personal computers (PC) in China were up in 2008, however, the growth rate slowed, according to a report released on Wednesday.

Last year, 32.19 million desktop PCs, laptops and servers were sold nationwide, up 15.2 percent year on year, but lower than the 19.5 percent growth in 2007, said the China Center for Information Industry Development (CCID) Consulting, a leading IT consulting company in China.

Sales in value increased by only 9.6 percent year on year to 161.2 billion yuan (US$23.6 billion).

In 2008, the number of laptops sold jumped 43.2 percent year on year to 9.02 million units. Sales revenue from laptops grew 27.1 percent year on year to 63.6 billion yuan, according to the company.

The number of desktops sold last year rose 6.8 percent to 22.49 million units. Sales revenue dropped 0.8 percent to 85.37 billion yuan compared to a year ago.

The report said buyers are withholding their purchase plans and market growth would heavily depend on the global economy this year. It said PC makers would have to look elsewhere, such as the rural market, for new growth.

The report also estimated PC sales would reach 177.4 billion yuan in 2009, with 82.82 billion yuan coming from desktops and 80.6 billion yuan from laptops.

(Xinhua News Agency February 19, 2009)