An embodiment of the invention is a processor including execution circuitry to calculate, in response to a decoded instruction, a result of a complex multiplication of a first complex number and a second complex number. The calculation includes a first operation to calculate a first term of a real component of the result and a first term of the imaginary component of the result. The calculation also includes a second operation to calculate a second term of the real component of the result and a second term of the imaginary component of the result. The processor also includes a decoder, a first source register, and a second source register. The decoder is to decode an instruction to generate the decoded instruction. The first source register is to provide the first complex number and the second source register is to provide the second complex number.