Nokia, the world's leading mobile phone maker, has reported a surge in fourth quarter and full-year 2007 profits, boosted by strong handset sales.
In the fourth quarter, the Finnish company saw its net profits jump 44% from the same period a year earlier to €1.8 billion, on 34% higher sales of €15.7 billion. The figures were ahead of expectations.
For the full year, Nokia posted a 67% rise in net profits to €7.2 billion as sales jumped 24% to €51 billion.
Nokia saw its handset sales figure grow by 5% in the fourth quarter, and by 1% for the whole year to €25 billion. As a result, it retained its top spot with a market share of 40%.
Nokia sold a record 133.5 million mobile devices in the fourth quarter, an increase of 27%. The strong results were in part due to the phone maker's rapid penetration in emerging markets and to the woes of some of its top competitors, including Motorola, which saw its phone sales plummet 33% last year.
Nokia said it expected handset sales across the industry to be down slightly in the current quarter due to seasonal factors, but said sales should grow by about 10% this year.
