One of the first companies to report 3Q03 financials is also one of the bellwethers — and it’s giving investors reason to smile.

Intel Corp., Santa Clara, CA, reported a 3Q03 profit of $1.7 billion, compared with $686 million a year ago. Revenue of $7.8 billion is up 20% from $6.5 billion in 3Q02. Year-on-year, revenue by geographic region grew by 4% in Asia and 2% in Japan, while sinking by 4% in the Americas and 2% in Europe.

“Our resolve to invest aggressively during the downturn is paying off with double-digit growth,” boasted CEO Craig Barrett. The company reported record unit shipments of microprocessors and chipsets, components used in more than 80% of the world’s PCs.

Intel also narrowed its capital spending forecasts for 2003, now expected to be between $3.6 billion and $3.7 billion, compared with previous projections of $3.5 billion to $3.9 billion.

For the fourth quarter, Intel expects to report more good news: revenue of $8.1 billion to $8.7 billion, and a slightly improved gross margin of 60%.