<p>IDG News Service (New York Bureau) Making the most of a sluggish world economy, IBM managed to increase its net income by 5 percent in 2012, even though revenue shrank by 2 percent.</p><p>IBM reported revenue of US$104.5 billion for fiscal 2012, down from $106.9 billion in 2011. Net income was $16.6 billion, or $14.37 per share, up from $15.9 billion a year earlier. The earnings-per-share figure is up 10 percent from 2011, the tenth consecutive year that IBM increased its full-year earnings by 10 percent or more.</p><p>Ginni Rometty, IBM chairman, president and CEO, attributed the financial buoyancy to various growth initiatives, including efforts in analytics, cloud computing and Smarter Planet systems, along with a strong emphasis on growing markets.</p><p>Full-year revenue from "cloud operations" increased by 80 percent, according to IBM. Smarter Planet system revenue increased by 25 percent. And business in growth markets -- such as India and China -- increased by 4 percent year over year. IBM didn't give precise figures in its press release for the cloud and Smarter Planet sales.</p><p><a href="http://www.cio.com/article/727176/IBM_boosts_full_year_profit_despite_lower_revenue?taxonomyId=1375">Keep reading...</a></p>