Networking gear giant Cisco Systems on Tuesday posted strong quarterly earnings and issued an upbeat forecast, which drove the company’s shares higher and may raise expectations for the technology sector as a whole during 2007. Cisco said it earned $1.92 billion, or 31 cents per share, in the quarter ending in December. New routers and related gear helped Cisco siphon business from rivals in the Internet space, and its acquisition of Scientific-Atlanta was paying off with sharply higher sales of set-top cable boxes, the company said.

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