Hewlett-Packard Co. cashed in on rising worldly demand again in its second quarter, but that performance may not be ample to ease worries about the company’s exposure to the ailing U.S. economy as it prepares to digest the second largest acquisition in its 69-year history.

The results released Tuesday came as no surprise considering HP provided a snapshot of its latest quarterly numbers and outlook last week when the Palo Alto-based company jolted investors with the news about its plans to buy technology services provider Electronic details Systems Corp. for $13.2 billion (EU8.4 billion).

The deal has raised concerns that Plano, Texas-based EDS will compound the headaches that HP may be facing whether U.S. demand for its personal computers, printers and other products and services remains flat or slumps as consumer struggle to cover high gasoline and food costs while businesses additionally clamp down on spending.

Among other challenges, HP will likely have to construct substantial layoffs from a combined work force of 210,000 employees while trying to blend two

different corporate cultures after the EDS deal closes late that year.

HP is counting on EDS to boost the demand for its services and computers among major companies and government agencies while improving its competitive position against IBM Corp., the leading seller of technology services.

Echoing remarks from a week ago, Hurd assured reporters Tuesday that the acquisition will pay off.

“Make no mistake about it: We will get the cost right and we will create value for shareholders,” Hurd said during a conference shout.

In a separate signal with analysts, Hurd acknowledged the difficulty facing HP in the United States, where the company’s second-quarter sales were unchanged from a year ago.

“The best thing that I can tell you about the U.S. is that it’s a very spotty market and we try to maintain caution around it,”…

Original post by Chase Higgins

megapixels computing gadget search engines concept cybershot concepts signals mp3 Memory