Nordic telecom TeliaSonera to slash 2,000 jobs

STOCKHOLM -- Nordic telecommunications company TeliaSonera AB says it will cut 2,000 jobs, or 7 percent of its staff, after sales and profits slumped in the third quarter.

Net profit in the three-month period was down 1.2 percent to 4.80 billion kronor ($723 million), from 4.86 billion kronor a year earlier. Sales sagged by 3.2 percent to 25.8 billion kronor.

CEO Lars Nyberg, President and CEO said the company's cost base is growing faster than its revenues, "and we have to reverse that trend."

Nyberg said TeliaSonera will try to cut costs by 2 billion kronor in the next two years, partly by reducing its workforce, "and our initial estimate is that it will affect approximately 2,000 employees."

TeliaSonera offers mobile services in the Nordic region and Spain, and also owns stakes in telecom operators in central Asia.