Nokia reported another quarterly loss and dwindling cash reserves today, but results were better than expected ahead of next month's launch of new smartphones that it hopes can win back market share from Apple and Samsung.

The company's third-quarter underlying loss before one-off items was 0.07 euro per share compared to a profit of 0.03 euro a year earlier. Analysts had forecast a loss of 0.11 euro in a Reuters poll.

Third-quarter net loss widened to €969 million from €68 million a year earlier and revenue dropped 19 per cent to €7.24 billion.

Operating profit at Nokia Siemens Networks, the network joint venture with Germany's Siemens AG, was €182 million, compared with a year-earlier loss. Sales at the unit rose 3 per cent to €3.5 billion.

Nokia's net cash position fell to €3.6 billion by the end of the quarter from €4.2 billion in June but still came in ahead of market forecasts of €3.4 billion.

Once the world's biggest mobile phone maker, Nokia has fallen behind rivals in smartphones, and its partnership with software giant Microsoft has yet to challenge the dominance of Apple's iPhones or Samsung's Galaxy models.

The Finnish group is now pinning its hopes on new, top-of-the-range Lumia 820 and 920 phones, which use Microsoft's latest Windows 8 software and are due to hit stores in November.

Reuters