Hewlett-Packard Co.(HP), the world's largest personal computer vendor, on Tuesday reported declines of profit and sales in its most recent quarter, an indication that consumers may still be pulling back their spending on information technology products.

HP said that in the company's 2009 second fiscal quarter ended on April 30, its net income fell to US$1.7 billion or 70cents per share, down 17 percent and 13 percent respectively compared with the same period a year earlier.

Sales as a whole dropped 3 percent from the year-ago quarter to US$27.4 billion, with notebook and desktop personal computer sales declining 13 percent and 24 percent respectively.

Looking ahead, HP projected that its third quarter sales may drop as much as 2 percent from previous quarter.

Sales in the full 2009 fiscal year are expected to "decline approximately 4 percent to 5 percent from the prior-year period," the company said in a statement.

(Xinhua News Agency May 20, 2009)