SAP's profit for 2007 was €1.92bn (£1.43bn), an improvement of three per cent on the previous year, and revenue was up 10 per cent to €10.23bn (£7.6bn.

But in the fourth quarter, profit totaled €756m (£562m) a drop of six per cent on the same period of 2006, though sales rose to €3.24bn (£2.4bn) from €2.9bn (£2.1bn) the year before.

"2007 represented another good year for SAP with strong growth in software and software related services," said chief executive Henning Kagermann.

"The outstanding performance reflects the continued success we are seeing in SAP’s established business, which will continue to be the foundation for growth heading into 2008 and beyond."