L M Ericsson Telefon AB yesterday met market expectations with a 30% jump in nine month profits – $594m at the pre-tax level, but the shares took one look at the figures and wilted, falling one crown to 183.5 in Stockholm on the announcement, and touching a low of 183 before recovering to the pre-announcement level of 184.5. The reason was that the company sounded a warning note that increasing competition in the global telecommunications sector could impact profit margins. The company said orders had risen 22% in the nine months to $9.07bn, and net sales surged 17% to $7.42bn – largely as a result of its cellular business. And this is the company that, five years ago, they were saying looked to be too small to compete on the world telecommunications equipment market. Chief executive Lars Ramqvist said yesterday that orders could reach $12.3bn for the full year. The radio communications division accounted for over 63% of sales. Sales of cellular phones and systems jumped 38% in the nine months to September 30 and orders rose 34%. Public telecommunications fell 5% to $1.47bn.
