Nokia posts loss of $832 million in third quarter

October 15, 2009

(AP) -- World-leading mobile phone maker Nokia Corp. on Thursday reported a loss of euro559 million ($832 million) in the third quarter, taking hits from a 20 percent drop in sales and a one-time charge for the fallen value of its network equipment unit.

The company's share price plummetted 6.6 percent to euro9.62 ($14.32) in Helsinki.

Nokia made a profit of euro1.09 billion in the same quarter of 2008.

Net sales in the July-September period dropped to euro9.81 billion, down from euro12.2 billion in the same period last year, partly due to a shortage of components across its product portfolio, Nokia said.

The Finnish company also booked a euro908 million charge at Nokia Siemens Networks. The write-down reflects the company's recognition that it won't recover its investment in the joint venture it formed with Siemens AG in 2007 because of more difficult conditions in the industry and likely lower profitability.

The mobile phone industry has been hit hard by the financial crisis, but Nokia said the market outlook is improving. It raised its 2009 forecast for mobile phone volumes, saying it now expects a 7 percent decline from the previous year, rather than the 10 percent fall it had earlier predicted.

Nokia also upgraded its estimates for the network infrastructure market, predicting a 5 percent fall in euro terms in 2009, compared to an earlier estimate of a 10 percent decline.

The company maintained its No. 1 position in global mobile phone sales, with 38 percent market share - unchanged from the same period in 2008 and the second quarter of this year. It said it expects no growth in the fourth quarter.

Meanwhile, the average selling price of Nokia handsets was euro62 - down from euro72 in the same quarter in 2008, but unchanged from the second quarter of this year.

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