Microsoft Corp. recently announced their revenue of $16.63 billion for the second quarter.

What can you expect in this period of recession? Negative reports ofcourse. Their quarterly profits were down (contrary to revenue, that showed a slight increase):

“Operating income, net income and diluted earnings per share for the quarter were $5.94 billion, $4.17 billion and $0.47, declines of 8%, 11% and 6%, respectively, compared with the prior year.”

As a result, their stocks went down by 7% in early trading, and not to mention the massive layoffs in the upcoming future. There are both rumors as well as reports :

“While we are not immune to the effects of the economy, I am confident in the strength of our product portfolio and soundness of our approach,” said Steve Ballmer, chief executive officer at Microsoft. “We will continue to manage expenses and invest in long-term opportunities to deliver value to customers and shareholders, and we will emerge an even stronger industry leader than we are today.”