Microsoft Corp.s’ sales and profit got a boost from demand for Azure cloud computing programs and internet-based versions of Office productivity software, lifting results above analysts’ expectations. The first-quarter profit,  ended on September 30, rose to $ 10.7 billion, or $ 1.38 a share, compared with the $ 1.24 per-share average estimate of analysts polled by Bloomberg. Revenue rose 14 per cent to $ 33.1 billion; the Redmond, Washington based company said in a statement, better than the $ 32.2 billion average predictions.
In the past five years, Chief Executive Officer Satya Nadella building up Microsoft’s cloud business, which avoids the customer having to buy and run their hardware and application. Revenue from Azure cloud services rose 59 per cent in the recent period, slowing from a 64 per cent gain in the previous period and 73 per cent for the quarter before that. As a result, the company is working to improve margins and rack up a steady stream of large deals for Azure, which competes with Amazon.com Inc.’s web-services division. Sales of the subscription-based Office 365 for corporate customers, Microsoft’s other major cloud business, jumped 25 per cent.
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