Nokia reported mobile phone sales of 7.4 billion Euros (US$10.57 billion) in China in the first quarter this year, up 17 percent over the same period last year.

David Ho, Nokia China president, said this shows that China has become the largest market for Nokia cellular phones in the world.

Ho said Nokia topped other handsets producers in China and it took up the largest niche of 3G equipment market of China, which indicate Nokia's leading position in China's telecommunications sector.

Nokia is the largest exporter of telecommunications products in China. It exported US$14 billion worth of merchandise in the past five years.

Nokia has established five research and development centers in China, which employ more than 6,000 people. Of Nokia's global mobile phone sales, 40 percent are developed by the Beijing-based Nokia Research and Development Center.

This year marks the 20th anniversary of Nokia's presence in China.

(Xinhua News Agency May 3, 2005)