Gartner Cuts IT Spending Estimate for 2013

The market researchers at Gartner have reduced their predictions for worldwide technology spending in 2013 from 4.1 percent growth to just 2 percent growth. They believe the market will be worth $3.6 trillion this year.

Computerworld’s Chris Kanaracus reported, “Gartner has lowered its expectations for growth this year in global IT spending, saying it will rise 2% to $3.7 trillion. Earlier this year, the analyst firm predicted 2013 growth of 4.1%. The reduction ‘mainly reflects the impact of recent fluctuations in U.S. dollar exchange rates,’ Gartner said Tuesday.”

CNET’s Lance Whitney added, “However, spending on technology devices is also projected to take a nosedive. Gartner now expects spending on IT devices to grow just 2.8 percent, a hefty fall from the prior forecast of 7.9 percent. The first quarter’s drop in PC sales continued into the second quarter, with no recovery eyed for the rest of 2013. New devices will debut during the second half of the year, though they won’t be enough to prop up the weak PC market, according to Gartner.”

The Wall Street Journal’s Melodie Warner noted, “Gartner currently expects data center systems spending to grow 2.1%, compared with its prior 3.7% growth forecast.”

According to the press release, “Enterprise software spending is on pace to grow 6.4 percent in 2013. Growth expectations for customer relationship management (CRM) have been raised to reflect expanded coverage into e-commerce, social and mobile. Expectations for digital content creation and operating systems have been reduced as software as a service (SaaS) and changing device demands impact traditional models and markets.”