Handset sales defy prediction

LG Electronics Inc., the world’s fourth-largest mobile phone maker, said its third-quarter shipments would surpass expectations; both Nokia and Samsung Electronics Co. have also announced unexpectedly high sales of handsets. Na Young-bae, head of investor relations at LG, said in an interview yesterday that the firm’s third-quarter mobile phone shipments might exceed the 14 million units projected in July, pushed by unexpectedly high demand from North America. He declined to cite specify a figure. The latest comments from LG may assuage concerns that arose in the second quarter, when the company reported sales beneath analysts’ estimates. Nokia, the world’s top handset vendor, yesterday raised its third-quarter sales and profit forecast, while third-ranked Samsung Electronics said last week shipments would be at the high end of an earlier projection. Motorola Inc., the world’s second-largest handset maker, has not yet commented on demand this quarter.