Armonk

Even after IBM Corp. surprised Wall Street with a healthy profit in the third quarter and a reaffirmation of its earnings outlook for the rest of the year, the broader technology sector dived again Thursday. There's just not enough of what lifted IBM to go around.

Tech stocks were pummeled Thursday, and IBM ended the day down as well. Analysts expressed fears that Armonk, New York-based IBM could see trouble in the fourth quarter and into 2009 if the lending and spending climate worsens as expected.

At a time when consumers are worried about the nation's economy, IBM wants everyone to know it is financially sound. The Armonk, NY-based company released a preview of its earnings Wednesday, a week before its scheduled earnings announcement on Oct. 16, and said it remains confident in its financial outlook for the year.

Analysts say the move was a silver lining in a dark cloud and helped reassure shaken technology investors who have been selling stocks because of fears of a decrease in spending.

IBM announced new software and services for mobile workers Friday, including applications for the iPhone and Blackberry devices. The Armonk, N.Y.-based company cited a surge in mobile devices as an important new market for traditional desktop, storage and server vendors.

IBM's internal research by its Institute for Business Value estimates that more than one billion people will be connected to the Internet this year -- a 191 percent jump from 2006. This makes mobile computing one of the fastest-growing markets in the world.

Mobility@Work