Sony Ericsson is the world's fifth-largest maker of mobile phones

Mobile phone maker Sony Ericsson has seen pre-tax profits fall, blaming demand for cheaper phones and fluctuation in currency rates.

It made a profit of 12 million euros (£9.3m; $16.2m) in the three months to 30 September. If restructuring costs are included, it made a 23m euro loss.

Consumers were scaling back when buying new phones, the firm said.

Earlier, Nokia reported a 30% plunge in third-quarter profit as it lost market share after competitors cut prices.

Finnish bank FIM said on Friday it had downgraded its recommendation on shares in Nokia - the world's largest mobile maker.

Price fall

Sony Ericsson, the world's number five handset maker, has had to issue two profit warnings this year.

The average selling price of a phone slipped form 116 euros to 109 euros.

Sony Ericsson's sales in the quarter totalled 2.8 billion euros, down 10% from a year earlier.

The number of phones sold during the period also fell to 25.7 million from 25.9 million in the same three months a year earlier - but this was slightly better than the 24.4 million devices it sold in the previous quarter.





