Xerox fourth quarter barely profitable

Xerox has reported fourth quarter profits of $1m

Electronics giant Xerox has reported a disappointing fourth quarter, turning in just $1m (£724m) in profit.

The company blamed the results on restructuring costs, weakness in developing markets and currency fluctuations, but claimed that that overall results for the year were good.

"In the fourth quarter, the continued weakening economy and rapid shift in exchange rates put pressure on the business," said chairman and chief executive Anne Mulcahy.

"Despite this challenging marketplace, we delivered $265m [£191m] in adjusted net income for the quarter and $985m [£713m] for the year. We continue to prioritise cash and productivity to give us flexibility in this uncertain environment."

The results revealed a worrying slowdown in demand. Sales revenue fell 10 per cent, sales of supplies and services fell eight per cent and equipment sale revenue declined 15 per cent to $1.3bn (£941m).

Xerox said that demand in Russia and Eastern Europe had fallen sharply, from growth in the high teens for the first three quarters to a drop of 14 per cent in the last quarter.