The PC market is showing signs of life again, but there’s trouble brewing in the United States. According to IDC’s latest numbers, global PC shipments jumped 6.5 percent year over year in ythe second quarter of 2025, hitting 68.4 million units. But that positive news comes with a dark twist.
The US market is grinding to a halt. You see, while the rest of the world is replacing aging hardware and finally moving to Windows 11, American consumers and businesses are slamming the brakes. The reason? Looming import tariffs that are casting a long shadow over the industry.
“We expected the US market to cool down this quarter given the inventory buildup to begin the year, but what we’re witnessing here might highlight US PC demand slowing down in anticipation of the import tariffs looming deadline,” warned Jean Philippe Bouchard, research VP at IDC.
In plain English: Americans may be skipping PC upgrades because they’re waiting to see how bad prices get.
Globally, some companies are thriving. Lenovo maintained its lead with 17 million units shipped, growing more than 15 percent year over year. HP followed with 14.1 million shipments, while Apple surged 21.4 percent to 6.2 million units. ASUS also saw strong growth, climbing 16.7 percent to 4.9 million units.
Not everyone fared well. Dell actually saw its shipments drop 3 percent to 9.8 million units. And while the “Others” category stayed flat, it’s clear that a few big brands are scooping up market share while everyone else scrambles.
But even winners are nervous.
Ryan Reith of IDC put it bluntly: “No one wants to sit on their heels and potentially miss an opportunity, but at the same time it is very risky carrying inventory.” With prices likely to increase due to tariffs, vendors may try to push short-term promotions to offload stock – a strange contradiction in a market facing inflation and slowing demand.
The real fear? What happens in Q3 and beyond. The US slowdown could worsen, and with vendors walking a tightrope between pricing and inventory, we might be headed for a chaotic second half of the year.
PC shipments might be rising now, but behind the numbers is a market that feels increasingly unstable. If tariffs land as expected, the US could see prices spike, demand crater, and a wave of desperate deals to clear warehouses. It’s a volatile recipe in an industry that had just started to recover.
