Shares in #Lenovo Group (992.HK) soared as much as 4% in Friday trading in Hong Kong on the back of bullish forecasts from the PC maker’s chairman and chief executive officer. In two separate interviews with Reuters and Bloomberg, Yang Yuanqing struck a positive tone on the outlook of its PC business. He told the former that the unit will return to growth in its 2017/2018 financial year, following a drop in shipments last year. Yang added that he expects the PC market as a whole to see “stable” growth and would also focus on growing its mobile phone business in the U.S. and Europe. China and U.S.-based Lenovo returned to profitability in the financial year ending March, but extended losses in its smartphone business. Its PC shipments slipped 1% year-on-year, besting a 3% fall in the overall PC market. The company competes with #HewlettPackard (HPQ) to be the world’s top PC maker.  In the interview with Bloomberg, Yang told the news wire that he’d fall on his sword if he couldn’t deliver on Lenovo’s sales goals. He said the company would invest in research and development in areas like artificial intelligence and e-commerce, so that Lenovo could better rival the likes of China’s #Alibaba (BABA) and #Tencent (700.HK). China this week said it wants to develop a USD22 billion AI industry by 2020. Here’s more from the Bloomberg article: “I don’t want to step down. I’m confident we can achieve that. That’s not something worrying,” Yang said in an interview Thursday after lifting the lid on a slew of prototype devices at Lenovo World, the company’s annual showcase. Those included a smart speaker housing the “Cava” digital assistant, a virtual reality headset, and new laptops. “Investors should have more patience. If you want to see the result, it will take time,” he added. Yang has drawn praises for his canny acquisitions but also criticism for at least one major dud. Lenovo transformed itself into a P.C. giant when it bought out #IBM ’s (IBM) P.C. unit more than a decade ago. The USD3 billion acquisition of #Motorola three years ago has been much less successful, with the device maker shedding smartphone market share since. Lenovo’s stock is up 7% year-to-date, versus 20% for Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index.
http://www.barrons.com/articles/lenovo-soars-on-ceos-bullish-pc-outlook-1500614636
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