Company 000-163 financial reports for the second quarter are just getting under way, but the quarter should be a strong one for the technology industry, based on analysts' estimates. The 74 technology companies among the Standard & Poor's 500-stock index are expected to report profit growth of 12 percent, notes John Butters, an analyst for FactSet Research.
I.B.M.'s 000-163 big services business grew 10 percent to $15.1 billion, though that was only 2 percent after excluding currency gains. Still, new signings at $14.3 billion were higher than most analysts' estimates. New contracts, which can stretch over years, are a gauge of future business. In the previous few quarters, the pace of new contracts signed had been sluggish, raising some concerns among analysts.
Gartner, a research firm, recently raised its forecast for the growth in global information technology spending in 2011 to 7.1 percent, up from 5.6 percent, a projection made a few months earlier.
That is the third-highest growth rate among the 10 industry sectors in the index, trailing only the more cyclical industries like basic materials, which includes commodities like aluminum, steel and chemicals, and energy, which is dominated by the big oil companies.
I.B.M.'s 000-163 big services business grew 10 percent to $15.1 billion, though that was only 2 percent after excluding currency gains. Still, new signings at $14.3 billion were higher than most analysts' estimates. New contracts, which can stretch over years, are a gauge of future business. In the previous few quarters, the pace of new contracts signed had been sluggish, raising some concerns among analysts.
Gartner, a research firm, recently raised its forecast for the growth in global information technology spending in 2011 to 7.1 percent, up from 5.6 percent, a projection made a few months earlier.
That is the third-highest growth rate among the 10 industry sectors in the index, trailing only the more cyclical industries like basic materials, which includes commodities like aluminum, steel and chemicals, and energy, which is dominated by the big oil companies.
