The Australian and New Zealand (A/NZ) ICT markets will experience a minor supply restriction from Japanese technology brands from mid-Q211 because of the tragic Tohoku Pacific Ocean Earthquake that hit north-eastern Japan on March 11.
"Whilst there has been lots of speculation around the extent to which Japanese technology companies have been affected by the earthquake, its subsequent fatal tsunami and rolling power blackouts caused by problems at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear reactor, IDC believes it is too early to know the severity of the impact," said IDC senior analyst, Trevor Clarke. "What is clear is that there will be some impact on supply chains and that this will start to be felt in A/NZ over the next few months, although it would be prudent to monitor the situation closely as it is quickly evolving."
Whilst the natural disasters that have affected sections of A/NZ, such as the Queensland floods at the beginning of 2011 and the Christchurch earthquake of February, have impacted end user spending on ICT, the bigger challenge with the disaster in Japan sits on the vendor and channel side of the market equation.
"There are a lot of big name Japanese brands that are potentially going to suffer as a result of these tragic events, but our initial research shows many have also come through with minor damage to production facilities and should continue to provide product and components to their supply chains," Clarke said. "These brands straddle a wide range of ICT markets in A/NZ and we expect businesses and consumers to continue to have plenty of buying options."
The situation on the ground in Japan is changing by the day and by mid-April, 2011 a more detailed view of the status of ICT-related factories and supply chains will be possible.
IDC wishes to express its condolences and support to all those affected by the Tohoku Pacific Ocean Earthquake and hopes for a speedy recovery for all concerned.
source: IDC
