Things are looking up for Intel and the computer industry

You don't have to look deeply at the numbers for Dell, HP, and other major computer makers to get an idea of how well the PC industry is doing in the current economic climate. We can look at things like CPU sales and GPU shipments to get a good broad overview of how well the market is doing since every computer sold no matter the brand has a CPU and a GPU inside.

Intel holds the lion's share of the CPU industry and therefore its fate is closely tied to the computer industry. Intel announced today that it was raising its Q3 2009 revenue and gross margin expectations. Intel reports that it now expects Q3 revenue to be $9 billion plus or minus $200 million. What's $200 million amongst friends after all.

The CPU giant expects Q3 gross margin to be about 53%, plus or minus two percentage points. Q3 financials are currently set to be released on October 13. The computer industry may be finally climbing out of the rut it has been in all year. Intel is also still cleaning up on the netbook side of things with its line of Atom processors.