For the Jul-Sept period, the mobile phone goliath reported net sales of 12.24 billion euros, a five-per cent decline from the 12.90 billion euros it posted a year earlier.

As it announced last month, Nokia also reported that its market share was shrinking, ticking in at just 38 per cent in the third quarter from 40 per cent in the previous three-month period and from 39 per cent in the third quarter of 2007.

The Finnish company's growth forecasts for the global mobile phone market remained in line with its expectations of a more than 10 per cent increase on a 12-month basis, saying it expected total device sales to stand at 1.26 billion units this year from 1.14 billion in 2007.

Chief executive Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo nonetheless remained upbeat.

'With our scale, brand, improving product portfolio and low cost structure, we believe Nokia is well positioned for the current times,' he said in the earnings statement.

Analysts too said they all in all were pleased with the results.

'They were in line with expectations and there were no disappointments,' Evli Bank analyst Mikko Ervasti told AFP.

Pohjola Bank analyst Hannu Rauhala meanwhile said Nokia had given 'a neutral result, although maybe a bit softer than I had forecast.'

'Guidance was pretty much in line with what Nokia had said before,' he told AFP.

Nokia's share price, which had plummeted 4.5 per cent in the hours leading up to Thursday's announcement, reflected analysts' ambivalent attititude to Nokia's results.

Right after the company released its earnings report, the share price jumped briefly more than 1.0 per cent into the black before slipping 2.46 per cent to 11.50 euros a share just before 7.00 pm.

'Markets are always expecting the worst and now the share is on a relief rally,' Mr Rauhala said. -- AFP