Apple dislodges Nokia as biggest smartphone maker

Both Apple Inc and Samsung Electronics Co surpassed Nokia Oyj in smartphone shipments for the first time in the second quarter, as the Finnish company sold fewer units from its aging Symbian product lines.

Apple accounted for 18.5 per cent of global smartphone shipments in the second quarter, compared with 13.5 per cent a year earlier, Strategy Analytics said in an e-mailed statement today. Nokia dropped to third place, falling behind Samsung after the Finnish company's market share declined to 15.2 per cent from 38.1 per cent, the analysts said. Nokia, which still remains the world's biggest overall handset producer, lost 47 per cent in Helsinki stock trading this year, reflecting its difficulties in competing with the iPhone and handsets using Google Inc's software. In contrast, Apple's shares jumped 21 per cent after sales of the iPhone helped the company post a record profit.

“Apple's growth remained strong as it expanded distribution worldwide, particularly in China and Asia,” Alex Spektor, an analyst at Strategy Analytics, said in the report.

Global handset shipments rose 13 per cent to 361 million units in the last quarter, led by a 76 per cent growth in smartphones, Strategy Analytics said in a separate report. Sales of smartphones, which are more advanced handsets with computer-like capabilities for running applications and playing media, accounted for 110 million units.

Nokia's share of the global handset market, which includes smartphones and more basic models, fell to 24.5 per cent last quarter from 34.7 per cent a year earlier, Strategy Analytics said. This was the lowest level for the Finnish company since 1999, according to the researcher. “Samsung is breathing down Nokia's neck,” said Neil Mawston, a London-based analyst at Strategy Analytics. “An unexciting touchphone portfolio, inventory correction, wavering demand for the Symbian platform and limited presence in the huge US market continued to weigh on Nokia's near-term performance.” Nokia fell 2.1 per cent to ¤3.97 in Helsinki trading today. Samsung, which today reported second-quarter profit that beat analysts' estimates because of higher mobilephone sales, has fallen 11 per cent this year.

California-based Apple, the world's most valuable technology company, posted record sales and profit last quarter, helped by demand for the iPhone, its biggest source of revenue.