A Decline Impacting Apple Inc. (AAPL) and Microsoft Corporation (MSFT)

The fact that the PC market is on the decline is no big surprise to anybody at this point. Companies such as Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL), with its iPhone and iPad are doing a big part in taking this market down a peg (learn why here). Of course, this doesn’t mean Cupertino, along with its competition, such as Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT), is able to avoid a negative impact.

IDC recently published an interesting report, taking a closer look at the PC market: EMEA PC Shipments Contract by 22.2% in 2Q13 as High Inventory Led to Cautious Channel Replenishment and Commercial Spending Remained Constrained

At this point, it may not be much of a surprise when a report talks about contracting PC shipments. However, it is always important to pay close attention to what this will do to companies such as Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) and Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT).

Here is what the new research had to say:

“New research from the International Data Corporation (IDC) Europe, Middle East and Africa Quarterly PC Tracker shows that PC shipments in Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) continued to contract in the second quarter of 2013 (2Q13) as high levels of inventory and slow consumer demand constrained new purchasing by channel partners and enterprises remained under economic pressure, leading to a 22.2% decrease in overall PC shipments compared to the same quarter last year. EMEA PC shipments reached 19.6 million units in the second quarter of 2013, with portable PC shipments at 12.4 million, declining by 26%, and desktops at 7.2 million, down 14.6%.”

While things are looking down in EMEA, this is no the only region that is suffering from the same. The PC market as a whole is going through a rough patch, with no real end in sight.

What does this mean to Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) and Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT)? For Cupertino, the impact is not nearly as bad since the company relies more heavily on the smartphone and tablet markets.

On the other hand, Microsoft has to be worried since it is the leader in terms of desktop operating system market share.

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is mentioned in the report:

“Apple benefited from several product refreshes but volumes remain impacted by the overall slowdown in consumer demand for PCs.”

It will be interesting to see how the companies in this space, particularly Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT, continue to react to bad news.

Share your thoughts on this data in the comment section below. Also, learn more about some of the good and bad for Microsoft (this piece tells the real story).