IDC Revises IT Spending Forecast Downward, But Telecom Spending Should Grow Slightly in 2020

Worldwide IT spending is now expected to decline 2.7 percent in constant currency terms in 2020, IDC now predicts. Spending on communications services will be flat, which might be deemed a relative relief for connectivity service providers. 

% Year Over Year Growth	2019	2020	2021
IT Spending	+4.8%	-2.7%	+4.9%
Telecom Spending	+1.0%	+0.5%	+1.0%
ICT Spending	+3.5%	-1.6%	+3.4%

source: IDC

This is the third forecast in as many months by IDC, as analysts have had to adjust expectations based on the roiling impact of the Covid-19 pandemic and what IDC is hearing from enterprise IT buyers, in all likelihood. 

% Growth 2020	January Forecast	February Forecast	March Forecast
Real GDP	+2.4%	+2.0%	-1.7%
IT Spending	+5.1%	+4.3%	-2.7%
source: IDC

“Overall IT spending will decline in 2020, despite increased demand and usage for some technologies and services by individual companies and consumers,” Stephen Minton, IDC program VP.

% Year Over Year Growth	2019	2020
Devices	+0.9%	-8.8%
Infrastructure	+8.8%	+5.3%
Software	+10.0%	+1.7%
IT Services	+3.9%	-2.0%
IT Spending	+4.8%	-2.7%

source: IDC

In the January forecast, Minton and his team were expecting real gross domestic product to grow by 2.4 percent and IT spending to rise by 5.1 percent. At the end of March analysts had revised their thinking on global GDP. The January forecast was that GDP would grow, as would IT spending.