"We are not seeing any slowdown... in fact there is a breathtaking demand (for software services) out there," Vivek Paul, Wipro's vice-chairman and head of its software services business, told a news conference in the southern Indian city. "We are not seeing people rejecting software services because of the Y2K scare... we are not seeing any let down," Paul said when asked if the company expected a slowdown in the remaining two quarters of 1999/2000.

Analysts and industry officials have forecast that Indian computer software firms could face a slowdown during 1999/2000 as global businesses would be cautious in placing new orders till the millennium changeover passes off without incident.

Last week, Wipro announced after tax profit of Rs 710 million ($ 16.36 million) for the three months ended September 30,1999, up from Rs 409 million in the year-ago period. At the Bombay Stock Exchange, the Wipro share on Thursday ended at Rs 1,195, up Rs 30.85 from its previous close.

Paul said that Wipro would look to acquire companies making either e-commerce software, telecommunications software or systems software when it decides to go ahead with its acquisition plans. "If the company we identify to acquire is outside India then the funding will have to be through an American Depository Receipt (ADR) issue... and if it is an Indian company it will have to be through share swaps," he said.