Infosys Technologies Ltd., India's bellwether information technology outsourcing company, said Tuesday quarterly profit rose 8.7 percent in dollar terms as a revival in demand for services spread to European and manufacturing clients. The company said revenues this fiscal year would grow 16 to 18 percent, but cautioned that a strengthening rupee, pricing pressures from still-cautious global clients and wage hikes would cut into margins. Net profit for the January-March quarter was 16.0 billion rupees ($349 million), or 0.61 cents per American Depository Share. It was a 4.5 percent increase in dollar terms over the previous quarter. Revenues were 59.4 billion rupees ($1.3 billion), up 15.6 percent from a year ago and up 5.2 percent from the prior quarter in dollar terms. Both measures beat analyst expectations in dollar terms, according to a report of the Associated Press. «I strongly believe that unless something dramatic happens we are again back on a growth curve,» chief executive S. Gopalakrishnan told reporters. The company, which usually exceeds its forecasts, said it expects revenues for the fiscal year ending March 2011 to rise 16 percent to 18 percent to $5.6 billion to $5.7 billion. It expects earnings to rise 4.3 percent to 8.6 percent to $2.40 to $2.50 per American Depositary Share.
