EBay reported a 7.7 per cent rise in quarterly profit on Wednesday, as tweaks to its websites and a focus on marketing drew more shoppers at a time when it has been trimming its workforce.

The company’s net income rose to $533 million (€457.9 million), or 53 cents per share, in the second quarter ended June 30th, from $495 million, or 45 cents per share, a year earlier. Revenue rose to $2.64 billion from $2.42 billion.

IBM reported second-quarter revenue that beat analysts' expectations as it benefited from growth in higher-margin businesses including cybersecurity and cloud computing. Net income rose to $2.4 billion, or $2.61 per share, in the quarter ended June 30th from $2.33 billion, or $2.48 per share, a year earlier. Revenue rose nearly 4 per cent to $20 billion, beating analysts' average estimate of $19.85 billion.

- Reuters