HP turnaround 'could take five years'

Speaking at HP’s annual customer event in Las Vegas, Whitman, the former head of eBay, said: "We worry a lot about Europe – whether it’s about the sovereign debt crisis, Greece going out of the euro or the challenges in Spain. We are preparing for a reasonably tough situation in Europe."

HP has a greater reliance on sales in Europe than some of its competitors and is considered to be more susceptible to a downturn.

HP’s sales have declined for three consecutive quarters due to falling demand for desktop computers and services and the increasing popularity of tablet-style devices such as iPads.

Its Q2 results, published last month, revealed a 31% year-on-year drop in adjusted net income to $1.9bn (£1.23bn).

Whitman said the company had been left with little room for manoeuvre due to debts that have arisen from a number of big acquisitions, which include last year’s takeover of software company Autonomy, for which it paid $11bn (£7.1bn).

"We have got to build up the balance sheet," she added.

Whitman hopes to reverse a slump in sales and the company’s share-price by cutting around 27,000 jobs and slashing debt.

The company has unveiled plans to trim its global workforce by 8% between now and 2014 largely through early retirement offers and attrition.