Source:  Reuters

Chip giant Intel Corp cut its fourth-quarter revenue forecast by about 14 percent citing weak demand across the world and in all its products, indicating the economic crisis is set to hurt computer sales in the holiday season and beyond.

The shock warning hammered tech shares, which had already tumbled earlier on Wednesday, with Intel plunging 7 percent to a 12-year low and Microsoft Corp falling 2 percent to a 10-1/2 year low.

Intel, the biggest maker of chips for personal computers, forecast fourth-quarter revenue of $9 billion, plus or minus $300 million. That compares to its October forecast of $10.1 billion to $10.9 billion, and the average analyst estimate of $10.3 billion according to Reuters Estimates.

“For revenue to be that far down sequentially, it means consumers have basically shut down for the holidays,” said Charter Equity Research analyst John Dryden. Intel’s third-quarter revenue was $10.2 billion.

“It’s so far below what they had expected … The company had outlined weakness in enterprise but not the consumer yet,” Dryden said.

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