Nokia expects market share loss

Nokia has lowered its predicted market share for the third quarter, sending its shares plummeting.

The statement by world's largest mobile phone maker pushed its shares down 9.6% to 14.20 euros having touched their lowest level since 2005 in trading.

The Finnish company has blamed problems with the production of its new mid-range phones and aggressive pricing by rivals for the downgrade.

But it remains optimistic it can recover its market share over the year.

Third-quarter woes

The company now believes its share of the market will be lower in the the third quarter than it was in the second quarter, when it stood at 40%.

Prior to this, it had anticipated it would maintain its market share quarter-on-quarter.

Nokia has also flagged up the increasingly aggressive pricing strategies of other handset makers as a reason for its revised view.

But chief financial officer, Rick Simonson, said the company did not believe that such a strategy would be "sustainable".

Some analysts said the share price movement was surprising.

"I think the share reaction is a bit much," said Greger Johansson, an analyst at Redeye.

"It seems to be their own decisions to a large extent," he added.

Despite the gloomy warning, Nokia did say it expected the market to grow 10% in terms of shipment, and was aiming to increase its market share over the course of 2008.

Rivals

The mobile device market has not avoided the economic downturn and weaker consumer confidence has buffeted business.

Samsung, Nokia's closest rival, saw a dip in handset sales from the first to the second quarter, but number three Motorola shocked the market by reporting an unexpected increase.

In order to boost its profits, Nokia has made a number of other offerings such as music deals.

It will report third-quarter results on 16 October.

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