Microsoft on Wednesday said its profits rose 18% for the January-March quarter, driven by its growth in its cloud computing and artificial intelligence business in a turbulent time for the tech sector.

Microsoft Corp. shares jumped after the company reported stronger-than-expected quarterly sales and profit growth, suggesting customer demand for cloud services has held steady despite a wave of tariffs and economic turbulence.

Microsoft forecast on Wednesday stronger-than-expected quarterly growth for its cloud-computing business Azure after blowout results in the latest quarter, calming investor worries in an uncertain economy and lifting its shares 7% after hours.

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West Coast tech giants Microsoft and Meta both exceeded analyst forecasts in first-quarter earnings reports Wednesday.

Shares in artificial intelligence and cloud-computing-related companies were rising sharply in late trade on Wednesday after Meta Platforms and Microsoft results beat Wall Street expectations.