Finnish mobile phone component manufacturer Perlos said it will lay off 200 workers in its Lehmonharju plant. The plant currently employs around 640 people.
The news comes as industry gears down for a sluggish year of mobile-phone sales after several stellar years of growth. Indeed, research and consulting firm Yankee Group predicts that the wireless device market will slow to a crawl this year, with handset makers selling the same number of phones this year-660 million units-as they did last year. The numbers are far removed from the double-digit growth rates of the past few years.
Perlos also said its first-quarter net sales in its telecommunications and electronics business will be “slightly lower” than in the corresponding period of the previous year. However, the company said it expects its full-year net sales to rise due to growth in the mobile-phone market.
Nokia Corp.’s stock price declined slightly following Perlos’ announcement on worries that the world’s No. 1 handset maker would report lower-than-anticipated sales. Nokia will report its fourth-quarter results Jan. 27.
