Chinese takeaway for IBM's PC business?

IBM is refusing to confirm or deny reports that it is selling off the remnants of its PC division.

In the past 24 hours sources claiming to be working on the alleged deal have named Lenovo (formerly Legend), China's largest maker of personal computers, as the probable buyer.

Lenovo accounts for nearly a quarter of China's PC sales, while IBM sells five per cent of the world's PCs.

"It is IBM's policy not to comment on rumours or speculation," a tight-lipped company spokesman told vnunet.com.

Big Blue sold its PC manufacturing division in 2002 to Sanmina-SCI, but still has input on design and development.

IBM is not the only PC manufacturer rumoured to be leaving the market. A Merrill Lynch analyst suggested last week that HP may be considering spinning off its non-printer operations.

HP is currently number two in PC shipments, with 15 per cent of the global market.