Telecom
Nokia Gaining Ground
Scott Moritz
05/14/07 - 09:44 AM EDT
Nokia (NOK Quote) raises its market share target, as the glut from Motorola's (MOT Quote) cell phone pile up starts to clear.
The Finnish phone giant says it now expects to expand beyond the 36% global handset market share it had in the first quarter. Previously Nokia had called for sequentially flat market share levels in the second quarter. Nokia did not say how much additional business it was looking to capture.
Last month, Nokia said Motorola had flooded the market with phones and that surplus clouded the view on sales and limited the company's ability to predict its market share. Motorola has been losing ground as its iconic Razr phone has fallen out of fashion. The Schaumburg, Ill., wireless titan is expected to unveil some new models Tuesday to help reinvigorate sales.
Nokia says now that "device shipments in the second quarter 2007 will be positively impacted, as excess device inventory in the market has sufficiently cleared."
Nokia shares rose $1.11 to $26.18 and Motorola was up 16 cents to $18.48 in early trading Monday.