The American software giant Microsoft reported on Thursday that it recorded record revenues and a 48 percent profit increase in the fourth fiscal quarter, attributing this to the increased demand from businesses and customers for Office and Windows software.
The software giant earned $4.52 billion in the fourth fiscal quarter. Its revenues jumped 22 percent to a record $16.04 billion. "All our divisions recorded strong revenues, especially the one responsible for Windows 7 and Office 2010," said Microsoft CEO in a statement. For the entire fiscal year, net profit rose by 29 percent to $18.76 billion. Revenues increased by seven percent to $62.48 billion.
Microsoft successfully launched Windows 7 earlier this year, which replaced the unpopular Windows Vista system. In the fourth fiscal quarter, Windows sales revenue rose to $4.55 billion, up from last year’s $3.17 billion. Revenues from Office and other business products increased to $5.25 billion, from $4.57 billion in the same period last year.
Internet division revenues grew by 13 percent in Microsoft’s internet unit, signaling a positive reception for the Bing search engine, which is becoming increasingly popular in the market and trying to compete with the leading Google. "Record revenues in the fourth quarter reflect the breadth of our offerings and the continued momentum of our products," said CFO Peter Klein. (H)
