Greg Spierkel, Ingram Micro Inc.’s incoming chief executive, said the technology products distributor is seeing slower going in Europe, a trend that’s likely to persist for the near term.
“From a macro point of view clearly there’s been some slowdown,” Spierkel told investors at the J.P. Morgan technology conference in San Francisco, according to Reuters.
But prices, which have been falling in the U.S. amid competition, are holding up in Europe, Spierkel said.
Europe’s trouble spots include Italy, France and the Netherlands, Spierkel said.
The continent made up the biggest part of Ingram’s sales in the fourth quarter but slipped behind North America in the first quarter.
Spierkel, who’s run Ingram’s business in Europe and Asia, is set to become chief executive next month, taking over for retiring Kent Foster. Spierkel now is co-president.
