HTC torches forecasts as stock tsunami floods skint Europe

Eurozone meltdown as smartphones pile up in Q2

HTC has slashed its Q2 top and bottom line estimates as it clears the glut of stock in the supply chain and acknowledges weakened demand in Europe.

The Taiwanese firm revealed revenues for the period are expected to be NT$91bn (£1.9bn) or some 13.3 per cent lower than the NT$105bn it forecast in April. Operating margin was also reduced from 11 per cent to 9 per cent.

The downgrade includes a one-off charge of NT$2.6bn to "facilitate the clearance of channel inventory for certain products shipped from last year", HTC stated.

"The revised revenue is due to lower than anticipated sales to Europe, and the delayed shipment and launch of certain products in the US," the company added.

The once high-flying vendor is also embroiled in another patent dispute after Apple filed a third complaint citing infringement and seeking to ban a bunch of HTC devices from being imported into the US.

HTC, the world's fifth-largest smartphone maker, has suffered at the hands of Apple and Samsung, which are expected to hold a combined 52 per cent global market share by the end of the year, according to global investment bank Canaccord Genuity. ®