IBM Corp.

IBM Corp. IBM Corp. said Tuesday that it managed a 9 percent increase in profit in the last quarter as the technology company's revenue grew for the first time in a year and a half.

The company, based in Armonk, N.Y., also offered a slightly better forecast for 2010, although IBM already had been telling investors it was "well ahead" of the pace it would have needed to reach its previous target. IBM shares dipped in extended trading.

The revenue boost in the latest quarter, which ended Dec. 31, was just under 1 percent. And it was helped by currency fluctuations. At constant values for the dollar, IBM's revenue would have dropped 5 percent. But even the slight increase was notable because the last time IBM's revenue had risen was the July-September quarter in 2008. Some analysts have been worried that IBM would have trouble continuing its streak of using cost cuts to squeeze out higher profits.

Citigroup Inc. Citigroup Inc. became the latest bank to take a cautious view of consumers' credit problems, reporting a $7.77 billion fourth-quarter loss due to failed loans and the costs of repaying $20 billion in government bailout money.

Even with the loss, Citigroup, the hardest hit of the big U.S. banks during the credit crisis and recession, plans to give big bonuses this month to its top employees.

The earnings report Tuesday, which met analysts' expectations, reflected Citigroup's struggles and changing status in the banking industry. The company was forced to set aside $8.18 billion to cover the loans consumers can't repay, joining other big lenders who are still losing money on loans. But Citigroup, having been forced to shed its big investment banking and brokerage businesses during the banking crisis, lacked those buffers against losses that other major financial companies still have. The company's focus, therefore, is on loans, which are deeply troubled but showing some signs of improvement.