Lenovo cautious on US consumer but exposure limited

LAS VEGAS, Jan 8 (Reuters) - Lenovo Group Ltd (0992.HK) is insulated from direct exposure to further weakening in the U.S. consumer economy as it has only just begun to introduce its first U.S. non-business PC line, its chairman said on Tuesday.

But Chairman Yuanqing Yang cautioned in an interview in the midst of the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas that the Chinese economy has become highly dependent on U.S. market demand and that that could hurt Lenovo over time.

"China relies on exports. I think, if the U.S. economy has some problems, it will impact China's economy," Yang told Reuters.

Shares of Lenovo fell 11.9 percent to HK$5.78 on the Hong Kong stock market on Wednesday. Traders cited U.S. recession fears for a broad plunge in Asian stock market indexes.

Last week, Lenovo moved forward with a long-anticipated international expansion plan by introducing a new line of consumer PCs in 12 countries including the United States, France, Australia and Singapore.

Lenovo is China's largest maker of personal computers. Through its acquisition of IBM's PC business three years ago, Lenovo is also one of the world's top three sellers of business PCs, known specifically for its ThinkPad notebook line. (Editing by Ben Tan)