Official explanations for the figures have Fujitsu’s success attributed to the release of new mainframes, while NEC’s was put down to its small and medium-sized computers being well received – plus of course increasing business with Bull and Honeywell Bull selling its machines as DPS 9000s and 7000s; IBM Japan’s recovery from a fall in turnover and profits in 1986 was remarkable, and thanks to strong demand in the financial and distribution sectors; Hitachi, while having a smaller share, grew significantly, apparently due to a large number of systems sold into financial markets in the first part of the year, and to the manufacturing sector in the second half; Toshiba was carried along by the demand for its laptops, and Unisys, created from the merger by Univac and Burroughs, emerged in sixth place to push Mitsubishi down to seven.
