China to be Nokia's world largest market in three years

Finnish mobile phone giant Nokia http://www.nokia.com has announced that China will become the company's single most important market in three years, driven largely by expanding demand for handsets in rural areas as well as phone upgrades by urban residents. As the company reports in a press release on its website, since the outset, Nokia has grown its presence in China from an original staff of five in 1985 to more than 4,700 employees, working predominantly in global manufacturing and R&D. China currently accounts for 10 per cent of the company's global revenues, behind the US, which accounts for around 13 per cent of Nokia sales.