Microsoft Shares Plummet After Sales Hit in China, Japan
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Microsoft Corp. shares fell 10 percent after reporting that sales slumped in China and Japan and a stronger U.S. dollar curbed sales of business-software licenses.
Commercial-licensing revenue fell to $10.7 billion in the period that ended Dec. 31, the world’s largest software maker said Monday in a statement. Analysts on average had projected $10.9 billion, based on a survey conducted by Bloomberg. Unearned revenue, a measure of future sales, was $21.2 billion, compared with estimates of $21.8 billion. The shares fell to $42.11 at 9:56 a.m. in New York, the biggest drop since July