Swedish telecommunications group posts sharp decline

STOCKHOLM, Sweden - Telia, Sweden&#39;s largest telecommunications group, said Monday that its first-quarter net profit dropped 56 percent from the same period last year despite a slight increase in sales. <br> <br> The company earned 127 million kronor ($12.2 million) in the three months ended March 31 from 291 million kronor a year earlier. <br> <br> Sales rose slightly to 13.8 billion kronor ($1.3 billion) from 13.5 billion kronor in 2001. Sales in Telia&#39;s troubled international carrier unit were 1.01 billion kronor ($97.7 million), compared with 750 million kronor last year. Sales in its mobile unit were up 17 percent at 4.65 billion kronor ($448 million). <br> <br> It said it saw strong growth on the Norwegian market and in demand for broadband service. <br> <br> Telia said restructuring efforts, including layoffs, and a decrease in investments were proving effective and were expected to have a positive effect on cash flow later this year. <br> <br> The Stockholm-based company had 16,671 employees at the end of the quarter, compared with 24,979 for the full year 2001. <br> <br> The company&#39;s shares were down 1.8 percent at 28 kronor ($2.76) in afternoon trading on the Stockholm Stock Exchange. <br> <br> Telia, which was partially privatized in June 2000, announced in March that it plans to take over Finnish operator Sonera to create a dominant telecommunications group in the Nordic and Baltic regions. <br> <br> Telia has said it will shed its Finnish mobile operations to win regulatory approval for the deal, which is expected to be completed later this year. <br>