Nokia cuts industry outlook

November 27, 2001 Posted: 1819 GMT

NEW YORK (CNN/money) -- Nokia shares fell sharply Tuesday after the world's largest cell phone maker reiterated its fourth-quarter sales and earnings estimates but revised its industry sales figures downward.

Nokia's (NOK: up $0.24 to $22.34, Research, Estimates) chief financial officer said the company is comfortable with the forecast given in October, when it lowered fourth-quarter estimates to between 0.18 and 0.20 per share from 0.25 per share.

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	CNNfn's Bruce Francis chats with Nokia's CFO about the outlook for 2002. Real 28K 80K Windows Media 28K 80K

The company also said it expects 17 percent sequential sales growth for its mobile handset business in the fourth quarter.

"Based on what experience (we have) so far and based on the current outlook for the remainder of the quarter, we really are in a position to renew the financial guidance...this includes all elements of the guidance," said Nokia's CFO, Olli-Pekka Kallasvou, during an analyst conference broadcast in New York.

Despite the reiterations, Helsinki-based Nokia lowered its views for industry handset sales in 2001 to 380 million from the 390 million it projected last month.

It also sees industry handset sales between 420 million and 440 million in 2002, a slightly more conservative outlook than the guidance of 420 million to 460 million rival Motorola gave last month.

In addition, Nokia said it sees a 20 percent decrease in the market for Global Systems for Mobile Communications (GSM) and "rather flat" growth for mobile network equipment.

Other wireless and cell phone equipment stocks fell in tandem with Nokia. Motorola (MOT: down $0.56 to $16.45, Research, Estimates) shed 2 percent, Vodafone (VOD: up $0.01 to $25.66, Research, Estimates) dropped 1.75 percent, Ericsson (ERICY: up $0.10 to $5.31, Research, Estimates) fell 5 percent, and Qualcomm (QCOM: up $0.60 to $57.89, Research, Estimates) slid 1 percent.

-from staff and wire reports