Sony Ericsson sees handset market still tough in 2010
Sunday, 24 January 2010
STOCKHOLM, Jan 23 (Reuters): Sony Ericsson warned Friday a recovery in the cellphone market could be slower than many expected as it reported its seventh straight quarterly loss.
The Swedish-Japanese venture's outlook is in contrast to budding optimism for the industry, which comes after a grim 2009 for handset makers and chip firms. Market leader Nokia has forecast global market volumes to rise around 10 per cent in 2010 as economies improve, a view shared by analysts.
However, the group warned there would be only slight growth in the market and this would come in the low-price segment.
"During Q4 we saw some positive signs of a market pick-up," Sony Ericsson President Bert Nordberg told analysts.
The Swedish-Japanese venture's outlook is in contrast to budding optimism for the industry, which comes after a grim 2009 for handset makers and chip firms. Market leader Nokia has forecast global market volumes to rise around 10 per cent in 2010 as economies improve, a view shared by analysts.
However, the group warned there would be only slight growth in the market and this would come in the low-price segment.
"During Q4 we saw some positive signs of a market pick-up," Sony Ericsson President Bert Nordberg told analysts.