Ericsson raises 2004 forecast

Mobile equipment supplier Ericsson has raised its growth forecast for 2004 following higher-than-expected results for the first quarter. The company said that full-year growth will be ‘slight to moderate’ following the release of the Q1 results, compared to a previous forecast of ‘flat figures or slight growth’. The company, which saw pre-tax profit grow to SKR4.3 billion from a SKR2.8 billion loss and sales jump 9% to SKR28.1 billion in the year to the end of March, attributed the results to growing traffic, network expansions and 3G rollout.