The worldwide PC market shipped 90 million units in the fourth quarter of 2009, rebounding mightily with a 22.1-percent increase over the same period last year.

Research firm Gartner said it was the strongest year-over-year growth rate the worldwide PC market has experienced in the last seven years. It should be noted, however, that these numbers are compared to a very weak quarter a year ago due to the economic downturn at that time.

“These preliminary results indicate the recovery of the PC market on a global level,” Mikako Kitagawa, principal analyst at Gartner, said in a statement. “The US and Asia Pacific had already shown positive indicators last quarter, however the fourth quarter 2009 results were more concrete evidence of the recovery.

“The Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) region entered the economic downturn later than the US and Asia Pacific, so it has been slower to recover. The EMEA region returned to positive shipment growth for the first time in three quarters, and Latin America and Japan also recorded shipment increases,” she said.

Kitagawa said the shipment growth was largely driven by low-priced consumer mobile PCs, both in regular notebooks and mini-notebooks. “As economic weakness continued, buyers became extremely price sensitive. Low-priced PCs were good enough for many average consumers,” she said.

“Windows 7 was launched during the fourth quarter of 2009. Though the new operating system launch did not create additional PC demand, the launch was a good market tool during holiday sales,” she added.

HP maintained the top position in worldwide PC shipments in the fourth quarter of 2009, as it grew slightly higher than the industry average.

Acer established itself as a leader of the sub-$500 consumer mobile PC segment in key regions. Acer’s improved branding strategies also helped it to work better with channel partners.

Dell grew below the worldwide average in the fourth quarter. The company did not fully benefit from strong holiday sales. Dell was not as aggressive on pricing as its competitors in order to protect profits, Gartner noted.

In Asia Pacific, PC shipments surpassed 27.1 million units, a 44.4-percent increase from the fourth quarter of 2008. China was key to the region’s performance, as the country accounted for more than 61 percent of all PCs shipped in the region.

For the year, worldwide PC shipments totaled 306 million units, a 5.2-percent increase from 2008. PC shipment growth was driven by the consumer mobile PC market with acceleration of average selling prices (ASPs).

HP defended its top position, while Dell was replaced by Acer as the No. 2 vendor based on shipments.