International Business Machines Corp (NYSE:IBM) has revealed it will be shuttering its research and development (R&D) operation in China, impacting more than 1,000 jobs.
The tech company on Monday confirmed earlier media reports about the closure, stating to media outlets: "IBM adapts its operations as needed to best serve our clients, and these changes will not impact our ability to support clients across the Greater China region."
IBM executive Jack Hergenrother told staff in a virtual meeting that the company’s China infrastructure business was declining and it was shifting its R&D work to customers outside the country, Chinese media outlet Jiemian reported.
The China R&D division’s 1,000 staff are spread between several offices and work in two research-focused units, China Development Lab and China Systems Lab.
This comes after IBM closed another R&D unit, the China Research Lab, in 2021.
Shares of IBM traded 0.7% higher at about $197 on Monday morning.