[Asia Economy Reporter Seulgina Cho] Following Apple, Microsoft (MS) also confirmed that it has become difficult to meet its quarterly sales guidelines due to the impact of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19).
According to economic media CNBC and others, MS stated on the 26th (local time) that its third-quarter (U.S. standard) sales in the PC-related sector, including the operating system (OS) Windows, will fall short of the initially expected $10.75 billion to $11.15 billion. This is the second time a U.S. IT company has lowered its performance outlook due to the impact of COVID-19, following Apple.
MS is experiencing disruptions in PC production and supply chains due to the spread of COVID-19. In its statement, MS explained, "Demand for Windows is as strong as expected," but also noted that "the supply chain is normalizing at a slower pace than anticipated."
The PC-related sector accounts for about one-third of total sales. MS discloses performance forecasts by sector, such as cloud and PC. The performance outlook for sectors other than PC remains unchanged.
After this news was released, MS's stock price fell more than 2% in after-hours trading. Intel and Dell's stock prices also showed declines of around 1%.
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