Chinese PC maker Lenovo's first-quarter profits rise 12-fold

Lenovo Group, the world's third-largest personal computer maker, said on August 2nd its net profits increased 12-fold in the first quarter.

Net profits reached 66.84 million U.S. dollars for the first fiscal quarter ended June 30, from 5.21 million U.S. dollars in the same period of last year, said a statement from the company.

The jump in profits came after Lenovo announced in April a plan to cut costs worldwide, by shedding 1,400 jobs or five percent of its global workforce.

Global sales in the quarter rose 12.9 percent over the same period last year to 3.93 billion U.S. dollars, with China contributing 39 percent to the company's total income, said the statement.

Sales in the Americas rose 15 percent to 1.1 billion U.S. dollars, while those in Europe, Middle East and Africa surged 22 percent to 755 million U.S. dollars. The Asian and Pacific markets reported a growth of 22 percent.

Laptop sales increased 26 percent to 2.1 billion U.S. dollars, while desktop sales grew 20 percent to 1.7 billion U.S. dollars.