The Monitor Market showed healthy growth: "Some people find profit anywhere."

Experts assumed that one of the main intrigues in 2020 would be "the struggle of monitors with laptops for a remote user." In many respects, this depended on whether the monitor market will be able to grow in the challenging conditions of the pandemic. And, according to the data of analytical agencies, it succeeded. The need for home computers, a significant part of which turned out to be desktops, significantly stimulated sales of monitors, compensating for the failure in the commercial sector. According to the officially announced results of the year from the analytical company ITResearch for the Russian market of monitors, the volume of supplies (only about 3 thousand devices) did not quite reach the impressive figure of 4 million units. The growth amounted to 13.1% on an annualized basis, which even slightly exceeded the forecast figure (+ 10%). In money terms, the market amounted to 667.5 million dollars, with an increase of 13.2%. Analysts also note active sales of gaming monitors and a shift of 24 inches (pronounced mainstream of the year), which has kept the weighted average cost of the devices at a reasonably high level.

Market growth was also noted by analysts from CONTEXT, a company that takes into account exclusively supplies through a distribution channel. According to Viktor Ivanov, Regional Director of Russia & CIS CONTEXT, "the growth of monitors was driven by the need to work from home, monitors correlate with desktops and laptops. As in the case of laptops and printers, monitor "stocks" are empty."

According to ITResearch, the top three in 2020 remained virtually unchanged over the year: AOC, Philips, and Acer. The fourth place is occupied by Samsung. "In total, these companies accounted for 50.7% of sales, which is actually not much: the intensity of competition in the monitor market, which is very attractive now, has been high lately," emphasizes Vasily Mochar, deputy director of ITResearch.

"In the monitor market in 2020, the key drivers in the b2b segment were supplies to healthcare projects and the transition to remote work (updating desktop PCs and purchasing complex workplaces for employees at the home office)," notes Tatyana Skokova, Director of MERLION's Wide-Profile Distribution Division. "In retail, the transition to remote work was also affected; the demand for monitors was high — up to 30% in workplaces based on laptops. There was also an increase in sales of game models up to 10% in units — in the absence of spending on the usual formats of leisure, the renewal of the fleet of devices for the gaming industry significantly accelerated. At the end of the first half of 2020, due to restrictions, the online channel, which partially retained its results in absolute figures in the second half of the year, dominated. The fourth quarter of 2020, against the backdrop of a shortage and a shift in shipping dates, was marked by the beginning of upward changes in producer shipping prices. In total, in terms of sell-out, the Russian market of monitors, according to our estimates, has reached 3.8 million units." <…>

Realities of 2021 — Uncertainty, Deficit, and Rising Prices

It's hard to say what will happen in the monitor market in 2021. One of the illustrations of the situation can be called the fact that this year many manufacturing companies refused to give their comments on the pretext that they are not ready to discuss trends and make any predictions publicly. CONTEXT expects good sales by the middle of the year: growth and at least some stability. Viktor Ivanov believes that the second half of the year will depend on the situation with Covid and the political situation (by the way, this applies to many European countries): "In any case, the demand in the consumer segment must be satisfied. We hope that the commercial segment with tenders will support the positive trend."

According to Tatyana Skokova, in the first half of 2021, a shortage of monitors and a rise in prices will continue, and in the second half of the year, the main operating factor may be a change in the exchange rate of the national currency, which affects both the purchasing power of the population and the ability to implement previously budgetary projects. "The shortage in the supply of gaming and general components will play a significant role in sell-out in the second and third quarters, and if it continues, it will negatively affect the supply of monitors," she says. "If the borders are opened, we can see a redistribution of household budgets, which will lead to a decrease in consumer demand. It is unlikely that new technologies, large diagonals, or resolutions will come to the mass market in 2021. All this will be possible only after the stabilization of production cycles and the normalization of supply chains. In general, according to our estimates, sales in the Russian market of monitors in 2021 will amount to about 3.8-4 million units, we expect growth from 5% to 15% in ruble terms."

The full version of the article with the views of all participants (distributors, vendors, analysts) is available on the CRN website.