Worldwide PC shipments are expected to increase almost 11 percent in 2008, but concerns about the sluggish U.S. economy could push that number down into the single digits by year's end, according to the latest research from Gartner.

Even with the U.S. economy slowing down in 2008, Gartner analysts believe that shipments of notebooks and a strong appetite for PCs in emerging markets, such as China and India, could offset losses in more mature markets.

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In 2008, Gartner is predicting that PC shipments will increase 10.9 percent for a total of 293 million units compared to the 264 million notebooks and desktops that vendors shipped last year, according to the March 25 report.