The latest forecast from analyst giant Gartner predicts global IT spending will reach $3.8 trillion in 2014.

The latest forecast expects a total rise of 3.1 per cent compared to spending 2013. The predicted increase in spending suggests confidence in strong IT growth compared to the limited 0.4 per cent growth in 2013.

The forecast pointed to increased investment in tablets, PCs and mobile devices driving spending with enterprise level software spending continuing to represent the greatest growth over the 2014 forecast.

Industries are also expected to increase funding in customer marketing while employing analytics. Richard Gordon, managing vice president at Gartner, said: “The focus is on enhancing the customer experience throughout the presales, sales and post sales processes.”

The forecast also expected companies to increasingly refocus investments away from data centre development, instead moving to cloud based platforms.

Insight into IT set to be a key focus for 2014