The last quarter of 2007 saw booming markets for top-tier US PC brands, new research reveals.

Data from iSuppli reports that HP continued its dominance in the global market during the fourth quarter, while Dell showed " signs of a resurgence" and Apple enjoyed strong growth.

HP's global PC shipments rose to 14.6 million units, up 25.5 per cent from 11.6 million during the same period in 2006, according to iSuppli's preliminary market share estimates.

"HP has capitalised on its strong channel presence and its strength in the fast-growing notebook PC segment, allowing it to attain and maintain market leadership," said Matthew Wilkins, principal analyst at iSuppli.

Dell saw its fortunes improve considerably in the fourth quarter, with shipments of 11.3 million units, up 17.4 per cent over the same quarter in 2006. This compares to 1.5 per cent growth during the third quarter.

"The upswing in year-over-year growth compared to the prior quarter, and the strong sequential rise in shipments, come as encouraging signs of recovery for Dell," said Wilkins.

Apple ranked just below the top-five brands at number six, a position the company has held since the third quarter of 2007.

The firm's total fourth-quarter PC shipments grew 39.3 per cent year-on-year, showing equally strong growth in desktops and notebooks.

Total worldwide PC shipments in the fourth quarter amounted to 76.2 million units, up 11.7 per cent sequentially and up 14.2 per cent from 66.7 million during the same period in 2006.