Mobile phone operator Nokia has reported a 90 per cent drop in profits.
In the first quarter of 2009, Nokia reported a net profit of £107 million, compared to £1.07 billion last year.
The news of the drop in profits comes shortly after the mobile phone company announced it would be axing 1,700 jobs around the world.
Nokia has repeated its forecast for market volumes to fall around ten per cent from 2008 levels, with the mobile phone business facing its toughest ever year as the global recession continues to bite.
The Finnish company said it sold 93.2 million handsets during the first quarter of 2009, down 19 per cent from the previous year, and 18 per cent from 2008's fourth quarter.
Commenting on the figures, Nokia chief executive Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo said: "The inventory already in the sales channels decreased substantially during the first quarter due to extensive de-stocking by operators and distributors.
"This adversely impacted our sales volumes in the quarter. However, the de-stocking means demand will be more predictable in the second quarter."
He added: "In what has been an exceptionally tough environment, we continue to invest in a focused manner in consumer internet services delivered across our broad portfolio of mobile devices. Combined these solutions will drive our future growth."
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