Hewlett-Packard Co, the world's second-biggest personal computer maker, will increase investment in China and start selling digital cameras and home entertainment systems in the country, said chief executive Carly Fiorina.
"Hewlett-Packard's promise to invest in China has remained a priority and our level of investment is on the rise," Fiorina said at a presentation in Shanghai.
Fiorina is focusing Hewlett-Packard on digital cameras, photo printers and entertainment systems as consumer electronics demand growth outstrips that for computers. Last year consumer market sales made up a "huge part" of the company's business, accounting for US$18 billion of the Palo Alto, California-based company's US$75 billion total revenue, Fiorina said.
PHOTO: REUTERS
"China is the largest and fastest growing consumer market in the world today with more than 1.3 billion consumers," said Fiorina. "The use of computers is spreading more rapidly here than any other nation." Hewlett-Packard returned to China eight months ago after withdrawing in 2001. The company plans to introduce its full range of consumer products, Fiorina said. This includes the HP-branded iPod music player based on Apple's best selling music player, as well as projectors, entertainment hubs and displays.
"The China market is extremely important to HP. We cannot achieve our objective to be the leading technology company without success here in China," Fiorina said.
The company is the fifth-largest seller of personal computers in China and the market leader among overseas-branded PCs, Fiorina said.
In the seven top cities in China, the company has a 12 percent market share for personal computers in eight months of operations since returning to the market, said Ken Koo, vice president of Hewlett-Packard's imaging and printing group.
The company plans to open more than 1,000 stores in over 100 cities in China and spend "several million dollars" on brand-building in China, Koo said.
Some of the digital cameras to be sold in China will be produced at the two plants in Shanghai, Koo said. He declined to give numbers. Hewlett-Packard sold 1 million digital cameras last year.
Worldwide shipments of digital cameras will almost double to 81 million by 2007, while shipments of music players will increase five-fold to 4.8 million units, according to IDC. Personal computer shipments will rise 42 percent to 217 million by 2007 from last year, the technology market research company forecasts.
ONE LAST TALK: While Xi said that Taiwan was a ‘red line,’ Biden, in what is likely his last meeting with Xi as president, called for an end to China’s military activity around Taiwan China’s military intimidation and economic coercion against Taiwan are the main causes of tensions that are destabilizing peace in the Taiwan Strait, Taipei said yesterday while thanking US President Joe Biden for expressing Washington’s firm stance of maintaining peace and stability in the region. Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) met on Saturday for their third meeting and their first talks in seven months on the sidelines of the APEC forum in Lima, Peru. It was likely Biden’s last meeting as president with Xi. During their conversation, Biden reiterated the US’ opposition to any unilateral change to the “status quo” from either
Taiwan would participate in the 2026 APEC summit to be hosted by China after Beijing promised it would ensure the personal safety of attendees, Taiwanese national security sources said yesterday. The APEC Leaders’ Machu Picchu Declaration announced yesterday said that China would host the APEC summit in 2026. Beijing proposed hosting the summit shortly before this year’s gathering began on Friday, a national security official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. Many APEC members expressed concerns about China hosting the event and said that prior communication over the decision was insufficient, the official said. Taiwan brought up concerns about legal “guidelines” China announced in
SUPPORT: Arms sales to NATO Plus countries such as Japan, South Korea and Israel only have to be approved by the US Congress if they exceed US$25m The US should amend a law to add Taiwan to the list of “NATO Plus” allies and streamline future arms sales, a US commission said on Tuesday in its annual report to the US Congress. The recommendation was made in the annual report by the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission (USCC), which contained chapters on US-China economic and trade ties, security relations, and Taiwan and Hong Kong. In the chapter on Taiwan, the commission urged the US Congress to “amend the Arms Export Control Act of 1976 to include Taiwan on the list of ‘NATO Plus’ recipients,” referring to
MEET AND GREET: The White House, which called the interaction ‘just a handshake,’ did not immediately respond to a request for comment on whether Biden planned to visit Taiwan’s envoy to the APEC summit, Lin Hsin-i (林信義), on Friday invited US President Joe Biden to visit Taiwan. During the APEC Leaders’ Informal Dialogue, Lin, who represented President William Lai (賴清德) at the summit, spoke with Biden and expressed gratitude to the outgoing US president for his contribution to improving bilateral ties between Taipei and Washington over the past four years, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. Lin and Biden exchanged views during the conversation, with Lin extending an invitation to Biden to visit Taiwan, it said. Biden is to step down in January next year, when US president-elect Donald Trump is