US firm IBM reports profit increase

American technology giant IBM has recorded a 6% increase in profit despite reporting a 3% decline in revenue. IBM's second-quarter revenue reached $25.8 billion, down 3% from a year earlier, but net income rose in this interval to $3.9 billion, the firm said in a statement. "Given our performance in the first half and our outlook for the second half, we are raising our full-year operating earnings per share expectations to at least $15.10," IBM President and Chief Executive Officer Ginni Rometty added in the statement. Revenue from the company’s growth markets increased 2%, rising 5% in the BRIC countries; Brazil, Russia, India and China.