Nortel Networks has reported a surprise return to profit a quarter ahead of its own forecast.
The announcement came on stronger-than-expected revenues for its telecommunications equipment and a $190 million boost from discontinued operations.
The company, which employs 1,500 people in Ireland including 1,100 in Belfast, reported the first-quarter profit even though weak spending by telephone companies pulled sales down from a year earlier.
It also warned it expects the overall telecommunications equipment market to be down modestly in 2003 from last year.
Nortel reported a first-quarter profit of $54 million, or 1 cent per share, compared with a loss of $841 million, or 26 cents per share, in the corresponding period last year.
The company said starting this quarter that it would no longer provide pro forma earnings - its favoured method of calculating results in recent years because it stripped out massive charges for writedowns and restructuring.
It said its net loss from continuing operations was $136 million, or 3 cents per share. Revenues fell to $2.4 billion from $2.91 billion.
Thirty-two analysts surveyed by Thomson First Call had expected, on average, a pro forma, or adjusted, loss per share of 3 cents, and 28 analysts forecast revenues of $2.32 billion.
Thirty-five analysts surveyed by Multex had expected, on average, a loss per share of 3 cents, while 26 analysts had forecast, on average, revenues of $2.31 billion.