Nokia Cuts Sales Forecasts for 2nd Half, Years Ahead
By Jonas Dromberg and Ville Heiskanen
Espoo, Finland, June 20 (Bloomberg) --
Nokia Oyj, the world's biggest mobile-phone maker, cut its sales forecast for the second half and the years ahead as growth in cellular subscribers slows and phone companies trim network spending.
Second-half sales will grow a maximum of 10 percent, Nokia said in a statement to the Helsinki exchange, compared with a previous forecast of at least 15 percent growth. Sales and profit will grow at least 10 percent a year from 2003, Nokia said, abandoning a forecast of as much as 35 percent annual growth.
``We are facing a very challenging economic situation globally,'' Nokia Chief Executive Officer Jorma Ollila told analysts and reporters at a meeting in Helsinki. Also, ``the telecom industry has its own challenges.''
Once Europe's most valuable company, Nokia has lost half its value this year, wiping out 75 billion euros ($72 billion) in market capitalization, on concern it will miss its revenue targets as consumers replace their phones more slowly than expected and telecommunications companies cut spending.
Still, the Finnish company reiterated a previous forecast to earn about 83 cents a share before one-time items this year.
Nokia also said it expects between 400 million and 420 million handsets will be shipped industry-wide this year, adding that it plans to introduce 30 new phones in the second half. Nokia holds an analysts conference in Helsinki today. |
