IBM shares drop

The giant's sunny patch finally clouded over...

IBM shares dropped sharply yesterday amid fears that its second quarter results could fall victim to the market doom and gloom. In the past, IBM has neatly sidestepped rumours that its consistency could be shaken. Previous speculation that the computer giant would miss projections resulted in stock upturns. However, following a research note from Merrill Lynch, prices dropped as low as $104.75 on Monday. Merrill Lynch cut profit and revenue projections which up until now have remained unscathed by the downturn in the technology markets. The investment house cited weak overseas markets, currency fluctuations and low prices as the reasons for lowering its revenue projection by two per cent to $22,7bn. In the note, analyst Thomas Kraemer claimed negative comments from Unisys had hit the market. Unisys posted lower than expected second quarter results citing signs of deterioration and weakening in European, Asian and Latin American markets. For related stories, see
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