Worldwide PC shipments in the fourth quarter of 2011 have declined by 1.4 per cent compared with the same quarter in the previous year, according to Gartner.

Lenovo, Apple, Asus and HP all winners

Figures released this week showed that the personal computer market shrank for the first time in more than a year due to frugality and a tablet computer craze led by Apple's hot-selling iPads.

PC shipments are set to experience a significant bounce back this year, according to an analyst firm.

The continuing economic recovery and growing interest in mobile devices will drive PC shipment growth by 19.8 percent this year compared to 2009, IDC said on Tuesday.

Echoing earlier research, a report from iSuppli shows that worldwide PC shipments hit record growth in the first quarter of this year.

A shortage of the latest Intel laptop PC microprocessors worsened in April, but the chip giant says it will meet demand by the end of this quarter.

Gartner has raised its worldwide PC shipment forecast for this year, predicting growth of 20 percent compared to 2009, partly driven by growth in shipments of mobile devices like laptops and netbooks.