International Business Machines Corp Photo: VCG

US tech firm International Business Machines Corp (IBM) said on Monday that it adapts its operations as needed to best serve clients, and these changes will not impact the firm's ability to support clients across the Greater China region, responding to media report saying the company is shutting down its research and development (R&D) operations in China.

Chinese companies, especially private firms, are increasingly focused on seizing the opportunities of hybrid cloud and artificial intelligence (AI) technologies, and IBM's local strategy is focused on having the right teams with the right skills to help them co-create those solutions, drawing on our considerable technology and consulting expertise, the company said in a statement sent to the Global Times.

Chinese news outlet Yicai reported on Monday that IBM will close its R&D department in China, with over 1,000 employees to be affected.

According to IBM's earnings report for the second quarter 2024, its business revenue hit $15.8 billion during the period with a year-on-year increase of 2 percent. Software revenue rose by 7 percent, while consulting revenue fell by 1 percent.  

In 2023, IBM's revenue in China decreased by 19.6 percent on a yearly basis, according to the company's annual financial results.

At an AI-themed forum held by IBM on Thursday in Nanjing, East China's Jiangsu Province, Hans Dekkers, general manager of IBM Asia Pacific region, said that this year marks the 40th anniversary for the company's operations in China, and it hopes to continue to take root in China in the upcoming 40 and more years.

Like IMB, foreign enterprises have constantly adjust their investment in China to be better aligned with the country's industrial upgrade and transformation, according to experts.

China continues to upgrade its traditional industries while nurturing new quality productive forces, which will inject new impetus to the country's industrial upgrade, Li Chang'an, a professor at the Academy of China Open Economy Studies from the University of International Business and Economics in Beijing, told the Global Times in a recent interview.

According to data from the Ministry of Commerce, China witnessed 32,000 new foreign-invested enterprises established in the first seven months of 2024, representing a 11.4 percent year-on-year growth. This underscores that foreign investors are positive about investing in China.