Steve Jobs, Apple’s co-founder and chief executive officer (CEO), said Wednesday that he is taking a medical leave until the end of June.

Apple Inc CEO Steve Jobs displays a redesigned iPod Nano at Apple’s “Let’s Rock” media event in San Francisco, California, in this September 9, 2008 file photo. In a move to dissipate latest rumors about his health, Apple Inc. Chief Executive Steve Jobs said on Monday that his weight loss is caused by a treatable hormone imbalance and he will continue to run the company.

In an e-mail sent to all Apple employees, Jobs said that during the past week, he had learned his health-related issues were “more complex” than he originally thought.

“In order to take myself out of the limelight and focus on my health, and to allow everyone at Apple to focus on delivering extraordinary products, I have decided to take a medical leave of absence until the end of June,” Jobs said in the e-mail released by Apple.

“As CEO, I plan to remain involved in major strategic decisions while I am out,” Jobs said, noting that the arrangement was fully supported by the company’s board of directors.

He said that during his leave, Tim Cook, Apple’s chief operating officer, will be responsible for the company’s routine operations.

Apple’s stock fell 6.4 percent on Wednesday.

Earlier this month, Jobs said his apparent weight loss was caused by a treatable hormone imbalance and that he would continue to run the company.

Jobs, who co-founded Apple with Steve Wozniak in 1976, resigned from the company in 1985 but returned as CEO in 1997.

In recent years, concerns about his health have become a factor that cause Apple’s stock prices to fluctuate.

In 2004, Jobs underwent surgery to treat a rare, far less aggressive form of pancreatic cancer. In the following years, his thin, almost gaunt appearance has constantly inspired speculation about his health.

VietNamNet/Xinhuanet