Alcatel calls an end to mobiles

NEWS Alcatel is to stop the production of mobile phone handsets following the breakdown in merger discussions with Lucent. As part of an ongoing restructuring, Alcatel said it will cease production at one of its two European sites and outsource handset production at the other. The company also said it is now looking for possible partners for its Enterprise distribution unit, which it is also contemplating selling. Shares in Alcatel were down 1.7 per cent to $21.26 on the news.