MAYASIA BUSINESS OUTLOOK8COGNIZANT SEES 21.4% INCREASE IN Q1 PROFITS, CONFIRMS FULL-YEAR REVENUE OUTLOOKASIA'S INNOVATION BOOM TO FUEL AI GROWTH, MICROSOFT REPORTSCognizant, the massive IT services company has confirmed its full-year revenue growth guidance of 3.5 to 6 percent in constant currency, supported by improved discretionary spending in the banking, financial services, and insurance sectors.The company reported, in the first quarter of calendar year 2025, a net income of $663 million, which marks a 21.4 percent increase from $546 million at the same time last year. Their revenue increased by 8.2 percent over the year and continued to reach $5.1 billion, bringing it into line with company forecasts. The growth was notably strengthened by the acquisition of Belcan, which contributed about 400 basis points to the topline.CEO of Cognizant, Ravi Kumar S. stated that Cognizant's differentiated AI and platform offerings are enabling clients to manage short-term challenges while advancing long-term transformation initiatives. It reflects the disciplined execution of their long-term strategy; he also added the rising importance of productivity, cost efficiency, and resilience.While the total contract value for the quarter declined 7 percent year-on-year, the trailing 12-month TCV remains solid at $26.7 billion.Cognizant's largest sector increased 11.4 percent over the year, financial services rose 6.5 percent and the remaining products and resources were up 13.6 percent. The Chief Financial Officer, Jatin Dalal, said that their first-quarter performance reflects strong operational care in a period of elevated uncertainty. They have delivered revenue above the high end of their guidance and expanded adjusted operating margin by 40 basis points per year. He also mentioned that Cognizant expects to return around $1.7 billion to shareholders through buybacks and dividends in 2025. The company plans to hire 20,000 freshmen in 2025, but the total headcount declined by 500 in Q1. To create a foundation for AI adoption, Asian firms concentrate more on design and technological work. According to a new survey from Microsoft, the president, Rodrigo Kede Lima, stated, "We've been through an inflection point where the two decades of 'Made in'--'Made in China' and `Made in Vietnam'-- are shifting to the decade of `Created in.'"Lima quoted, "We are consuming more AI than the rest of the world, and the region is ahead on AI." Lima who took charge in September after leading Microsoft's enterprise business in America. Previously, he served in Latin America as the company's president, where he gets prepared for work in a "multi-country, multicultural, multilingual" region.Microsoft released its annual `Work Trend Index' data on Friday, which includes both survey responses and data collected from its office software products to examine workplace trends and behavior. The data shows over 60 percent of Asia-Pacific region leaders want to increase their productivity, but nearly 85 percent complain that they don't have any more time or energy to give further mention to both Asia-based business leaders and employees.Microsoft data brings up a new suggestion to Asia-Pacific leaders to make use of AI to do things that humans can't do, for instance, available 24/7 or providing services and "unlimited ideas on demand."Lima believes that understanding how AI works will be a fortune for the workforce. He considered AI a new math, and it's going to create agents the same way we create a spreadsheet. As this positive side of AI will create new jobs by increasing economic productivity. NEWSROOM
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