HP CEO Says Industry Works to Close Digital Divide

Computer makers “have a long way to go to close this digital divide,” HP CEO Enrique Lores told investors. “We have a big opportunity to be part of the solution.” Though education market sales doubled in the past year due to remote learning, PCs per 100 students are “in the single digits,” he said about quarterly results. Executives at Dell and HP indicated Thursday that year-on-year growth likely would have been higher if not for the global chips shortage and other supply-chain disruptions that impeded order fulfillment. Lores expects “supply constraints to continue at least through the end of 2021.” Dell expects more PCs per household, shorter replacement cycles and a “higher notebook mix,” said Chief Operating Officer Jeff Clarke after results. Supply “has not kept up with the demand environment as we think about the need for semiconductors,” said Chief Financial Officer Tom Sweet. That’s “clearly an issue that the technology industry is dealing with,” he said: Component costs likely will be “inflationary in the second half” as shortages persist, especially in laptop displays and memory chips. HP closed 8.9% lower Friday at $29.23.