MEA Notebook Grey Market Persists as Official Supply Reaches Just 6.9 Units per 1,000 People
Updated
Updated · IDC · Jun 8
MEA Notebook Grey Market Persists as Official Supply Reaches Just 6.9 Units per 1,000 People
1 articles · Updated · IDC · Jun 8
Summary
IDC data shows MEA received only 6.9 notebook shipments per 1,000 people in 2024, the lowest among major regions and far below Latin America’s 30.3 and the global average of 41.6.
Official supply has barely grown with demand: MEA PC shipments rose to 13.7 million in 2024 from 12.2 million in 2020, serving less than 1% of a population of more than 2 billion.
Manufacturers’ focus on higher-margin developed markets and strict pricing floors leave authorized MEA channels thin and uncompetitive, creating room for unauthorized traders to fill the gap.
A Dubai case study showed diverted laptops bought at roughly $550, landed for about $615 and resold for $700-$790, with the city’s fast customs and wholesale networks moving consignments across Africa and the Middle East within 24 hours.
IDC argues the grey market is a structural response to scarcity, meaning brands must either expand MEA allocations and cut pricing barriers or keep ceding volume to alternative channels.
With a memory crisis killing cheap PCs, can Apple's new budget MacBook disrupt the Middle East's dominant grey market?
Is the rise of certified refurbished PCs a true solution or just another expensive alternative for MEA's grey market buyers?
Is MEA's tech grey market a problem to be solved, or a necessary correction to flawed global supply chains?
Digital Divide Deepens: MEA Receives Just 1.5% of Global Notebook Supply as Grey Market Fills the Gap
Overview
The Middle East and Africa (MEA) region is facing a deepening notebook supply crisis, with only 1.5% of the global official supply—about 2.7 million units—allocated to MEA in 2025, down from 1.7% and 3.1 million units in 2024. This decline comes even as the global supply remains stable at around 180 million units, highlighting a critical imbalance in distribution. While North America and Europe together receive 55% of notebooks, MEA’s share is the lowest worldwide. This persistent under-allocation is widening the digital divide and making it harder for MEA to meet its growing demand for essential technology.