Thu Apr 16, 2009 10:21 am
Nokia, the world's largest mobile phone maker, said its profits plummeted 90 percent in the first quarter of 2009 due to fading demand for mobile phones amid the worldwide downturn.
The Finnish company said net profits sank to $161 million compared to $1.6 billion in the same period a year ago.
Sales fell 27 percent to $12.2 billion in the quarter from $16.8 billion last year.
Nokia has fared better than many rivals during the world economic slump. But it, too, has been hit by falling demand. Last month it announced plans to shed 1,700 jobs worldwide as part of a major cost-cutting drive.
Its share of the global handset market was 37 percent, down from 39 percent in the same quarter a year ago, but stable from the fourth quarter.
The company sold 93 million handsets in the period, down 19 percent from 115 million in the year-ago quarter but more than the market expected.
Nokia repeated its previous estimate that the mobile device market would shrink 10 percent in the first half of the year, and be in the range of 13-19 percent for the second half.
"In what has been an exceptionally tough environment, we continue to invest in a focused manner in consumer Internet services delivered across our broad portfolio of mobile devices," chief executive Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo said. "Combined these solutions will drive our future growth."
Kallasvuo said he was "especially pleased" with the performance of the Nokia 5800, a touch screen music phone that rivals Apple's iPhone -- selling over 2.6 million units in the first quarter.
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