Sony Ericsson has posted a profit for the third
consecutive quarter, due boosted by record demand for its mobile
phones and restructuring efforts.
The handset maker reported a third-quarter net profit of €82m
(£55m) on sales of €1.3bn (£865m). In the first three months of
2003, the company made a net loss of €104m on sales of €806m.
Sony Ericsson shipped 8.8 million handsets, up 63% on the same
quarter a year ago. This figure is an all-time high for the joint
venture.
The company revised its estimate for the size of the global
mobile phone market for 2004 to more than 550 million units, up
from its previous estimate of 520 million units.
Last week two of Sony Ericsson's largest rivals, Nokia and
Samsung, announced their results for the first three months of this
year. Nokia reported a 16% year-on-year decline in first-quarter
net profit, to €816m, on sales of €6.6bn, which were down 2% from
the same period a year earlier.
In contrast, Samsung said strong sales of high-end handsets
helped it achieve a 52% year-on-year jump in unit shipments for the
quarter, to 20.1 million.
Samsung also raised its total market size prediction for 2004.
The company had predicted the worldwide market for mobile phones
would be 510 million units, but now expected a total of 560 million
handsets to be shipped this year.
Martyn Williams writes for IDG News Service