Oracle sales fall five per cent

Oracle says it has out-performed rival SAP in every region

Software giant Oracle reported first-quarter revenue down five per cent year on year to $5.1bn (£3.1bn), but net income up four per cent to $1.1bn (£665m).

New software licence revenue – a key indicator of future growth for software firms due to the ongoing fees that will be generated in subsequent years – was down 17 per cent to $1bn (£604m).

Oracle blamed part of the decline on currency differences, and in particular falling values of overseas currencies.

The company’s president, Charles Phillips, said the results should be judged in comparison with Oracle’s biggest rivals.

“We grew faster than SAP in every region around the world, including Europe, where our applications business grew three per cent in constant currency versus negative 39 per cent for SAP’s most recent quarter,” said Phillips.

“Our applications team also executed especially well in North America, where our applications business grew eight per cent in constant currency versus negative 50 per cent for SAP.”