"The reaction so far seems to be that we are getting more increase from customers who were previous customers (of IBM)," Michael Dell told reporters on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in this ski resort.

Asked if Dell was considering shifting manufacturing to low-wage countries, he commented that the company's current strategy of making PCs close to its customers had been successful so far.

"Almost all our production is localised, so in Europe all the manufacturing is in Ireland, and in the US in North Carolina, Tennessee, for example, or Texas. And in Asia we manufacture in Asia," he said.

"We have a direct communication with the customer, we have speed ... We are the most profitable computer company in the world in the small computer systems business, so apparently we have picked something up about how to make these things with a profit."

Dell said he expected his company to outgrow the PC market this year, posting growth of around 10 percent, and to record healthy margins.

"The estimates are in the 10 percent range. We expect to grow a fair bit faster than the market," he said.

"Our operating margins have been generally steady to slightly improving. I think our margins will be healthy."

The company recently moved into the printer business and Dell forecast it could become a major area for the company.

"(There is) huge growth in printers ... In three or five years it could be a significant business," he said.

All rights reserved. copyright 2018 Agence France-Presse. Sections of the information displayed on this page (dispatches, photographs, logos) are protected by intellectual property rights owned by Agence France-Presse. As a consequence, you may not copy, reproduce, modify, transmit, publish, display or in any way commercially exploit any of the content of this section without the prior written consent of Agence France-Presse.