RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST: NPR's business news starts with Microsoft's earnings.</s>RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST: Yesterday we told you about Apple earnings. Despite heavy sales of iPhones and iPads, its profits were flat last quarter. That's still better than Microsoft, which reported a four percent earnings decline. Those disappointing figures are blamed on sagging sales of personal computers, which have created a shrinking market for Microsoft's newest PC operating system, Windows 8.
Microsoft reported a 4 percent decline in earnings. The figures are blamed on sagging sales of personal computers.