Nokia’s CEO reassured investors that the firm’s liquidity positio...
Nokia’s CEO reassured investors that the firm’s liquidity position remains strong, though its Q3 net income fell 30 percent from a year ago. Nokia can run “unencumbered” by the financial crisis, CEO Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo said Thursday on the company’s…
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earnings conference call. Credit markets are “very tight,” but are “still open to Nokia,” he said. The company had about $9.7 billion in cash and other liquid assets on Sept. 30. Nokia’s conservative approach, its size and its capitalization make the company the “trading partner of choice in crisis,” Kallasvuo said. Hit by weaker cellphone demand in European markets, sales fell 5 percent from a year earlier. But the adjusted gross margin grew to 35.7 percent from 34.5 percent thanks to an agreement with Qualcomm and other licensees. Handset shipments hit 117.8 million in the quarter, up 5 percent from a year ago but down 3 percent from Q2. Nokia’s market share fell to 38 percent from 39 percent a year earlier. The company expects growth this quarter in mobile device sales and a slight gain in market share, Chief Financial Officer Rick Simonson said. It still expects the overall handset market to grow 10 percent in 2008. “We have our eyes wide open to what’s happening out there,” Kallasvuo said. “We are closely monitoring our markets, our customers and suppliers,” he said. Citi Investment Research called Nokia Q3 sales “light,” but said per-share earnings met Wall Street expectations. The company’s outlook is “mixed,” with no major market share gains expected, it said. Nokia had said it expected its mobile device market share in Q3 to be lower than in the previous quarter.