IBM's Hard Drive Unit Lost $423 Million Last Year

While it was well-known that the unit was losing money, IBM had not broken out the figures before. The Armonk, N.Y.-based computer giant agreed to sell the business to Hitachi on June 4 for $2.05 billion.

According to the filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, the losses increased throughout the year. The first-quarter loss was $27 million, $46 million in the second quarter, $118 million in the third and $232 million in the fourth.

As for the first quarter of 2002, IBM's hard-disk drive unit lost $92 million. The company plans to report second-quarter results next Wednesday.

Copyright © 2002 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.