CeBIT, Hanover, GERMANY, March 12, 2002 – Nokia (NYSE: NOK), – Nokia, the world’s biggest maker of mobile phones, lowered its forecast for first quarter sales Tuesday, citing the decline in demand for mobile network equipment as the driving factor.
The company said first quarter sales would be hurt by a 25 percent drop in network equipment sales, which make about a third of its revenues. Sales of handsets are also expected to drop between three to seven percent this quarter.
Like other mobile-phone makers, Nokia has been hit by the slowing global economy which has reduced demand for new handsets by phone companies and consumers.
But unlike its rivals, Nokia said profits could still beat earlier forecasts, due to cost-cutting measures and higher sales of more expensive phones. On Tuesday, the company unveiled six new phones at the Cebit technology fair in Hanover, Germany, including a color-screen phone with faster Internet access.
