HP pays for EDS with losses in Q1 2009

Hewlett-Packard’s net earning for the first quarter of 2009 dropped 13% to $1.9bn from $2.1bn in the first quarter of 2008.

The company said revenue declined 3% in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. HP said the company incurred costs related to its acquisition of Electronic Data Systems (EDS), which has affected the quarter's results.

HP expects its full-year earnings to decline by between 2% and 5%, depending on how the IT market changes during the downturn.

Sales of PCs in its Personal Systems Group (PSG) fell 19% to $8.8bn, and the company said the number of PCs it shipped  fell 4%.

HP's printer business appears to have been hit hard by the recession, with shipments down by a third, and revenue down 19% to $6bn.

The company’s software business declined with revenue falling 7% to $878m. HP said its business technology optimisation  business also fell 4% while other software revenue was down 14%.