Microsoft reports double-digit increases of profit, sales

SAN FRANCISCO, July 22 (Xinhua) -- Microsoft Corp. on Thursday posted a double-digit increase of profit and sales in its latest quarter, citing strong demand for its products.

Net income reached 4.52 billion U.S. dollars for Microsoft's fiscal fourth-quarter ended on June 30, jumping 48 percent over the same period a year earlier.

Revenue totaled 16.04 billion dollars, a rise of 22 percent compared with the year-ago quarter, representing a new record high for the software giant.

Earnings per share for Microsoft in the most recent three months were 51 cents, compared with 34 cents in the previous year.

The results surpassed estimates. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters had expected a profit of 46 cents per share on revenue of 15.27 billion dollars.

"This quarter's record revenue reflects the breadth of our offerings and our continued product momentum," Peter Klein, chief financial officer of Microsoft, said in a statement.

"We saw strong sales execution across all of our businesses, particularly in the enterprise with Windows 7 and Office 2010," said Kevin Turner, the company's chief operating officer.

Microsoft said performance of its Windows 7 operating system continued to be strong, which has sold more than 175 million licenses since it was launched in October 2009.

The company reported double-digit revenue growth in all of its business segments, a sign of the continuing recovery of spending on personal computer (PC) and other technology products by consumers as well as businesses.

Research firm IDC last week said that global PC shipments soared 22.4 percent in the second quarter of this year, driven in part by businesses that were moving ahead with replacements of their PCs.

Microsoft is benefiting from the replacement cycle as most new PCs are running on its Windows 7 operating system and other applications.

Editor: Mu Xuequan

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