Nokia Siemens books $1.1b in China sales

Telecom device firm Nokia Siemens Networks announced Wednesday it had won orders worth US$1.11 billion for 2009 from network operators China Mobile and China Unicom, Reuters reported. Telecom gear makers are battling fiercely for large orders in a shrinking market as operators delay investments and Chinese competitors Huawei and ZTE put pressure on prices. China is expected to be a key growth area for the telecom gear market, with China’s three telecom carriers expected to spend US$58.4 billion over the next three years building out their 3G mobile networks.