Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ) continued its reign as the top personal computer maker in the world as its closest rival Dell (Nasdaq: DELL) declined for the second quarter but still managed to hold its U.S. lead.

Palo Alto-based HP's shipments grew 37 percent to 11.3 million units through the quarter ending in June, to gain 19.3 percent of the overall market according to new data released Wednesday from market researcher, IDC.

Dell's global shipments, on the other hand, were down nearly 5 percent to about 9.5 million PCs from a year ago, though it retained its position as the second largest supplier.

Dell, which is in the midst of a turnaround effort, broke away from its traditional mail-order business model during the quarter. It began distributing computers under $700 last month through a deal with leading retailer Wal-Mart. It's too early to tell what results will mean for Dell. The Wal-Mart agreement will take Dell's products into stores in the U.S., Canada, and Puerto Rico.

In the U.S. market, Dell still leads with a 28.4 percent share, but its shipments were down more than 10 percent. HP is next with a 23.6 percent share, followed by Gateway, Apple, and Toshiba.

Total U.S. PC shipments grew 7.2 percent following a slow second half of 2006.

Raleigh, North Carolina-based Lenovo also saw a solid quarter, with worldwide shipments rising 22 percent to 4.9 million

The solid growth and passing of the Lunar New Year holidays (which produce a seasonal decline in Q1 volume) helped Lenovo regain third place in global shipments, IDC wrote in a released statement.

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