APPLE Computer reported a net loss of $740 million (£474 million) in its second quarter and announced plans to eliminate 1,500 more jobs in the next 12 months.

The company, which employs 1,500 people at its European manufacturing headquarters in Cork and which in January announced layoffs of 1,300, said that in its quarter ending March 29th sales fell 18 per cent to $2.2 billion.

The total of 2,800 proposed job cuts amounts to 16 per cent of Apple's total workforce.

Per share, the loss came to $5.99 dollars, down from 59 cents earned in the same period last year when the company had a net profit of $73 million.

Apple attributed the loss to inventory writedowns of $388 million after tax and net restructuring charges of $130 million.

Apple chief executive Mr Gilbert Amelio had predicted a shortfall of around $700 million in the second quarter but stressed that the company's problems were "fixable".

Mr Amelio in February told the Financial Times he expected Apple to begin to show a profit within nine months to a year.