Motorola staff numbers:

August 2000: 150,000 July 2001: 120,000 October 2001: 111,000 After latest cuts: 100,000

In addition, the company will close down more chip making factories, though it declined to say which ones.

The company also declined to say how many, if any, jobs would be lost in the UK.

Motorola aims to save at least $1bn per year from 2003 following the cuts, with savings of almost $900m in 2002.

"The extraordinary boom-severe decline technology cycle we are experiencing, when coupled with the overall softening of the global economy, dictates that the company must continue to improve its overall efficiency and competitiveness in order to return to profitability," said Chairman Christopher Galvin.

Chips and kit hit

The additional job cuts bring the total cut-backs to 48,400 for this year, though some of these jobs have been shifted to other companies, Motorola said.

In August 2000, the company employed 150,000. By July this year, that was down to 120,000. Following the latest cuts, the company will employ just over 100,000 people following three more job cut announcements during the autumn.

The latest job cuts will hit 4,000 staff at its chip making plants as well as 1,300 workers in its equipment factories.

That comes on top of 4,100 workers elsewhere in the company who have already been told that their jobs are to go.

Falling sales

The latest job cuts came as the company said its sales were likely to fall by 5-10% next year compared with this year.

Sales were expected to come in flat or slightly higher during the last three months of the year, the company said.

Motorola is losing money at the moment, but hopes to bounce back into the black next year.

During the three months from July, the company lost $153m (�105m).

Before the latest job loss announcement, Motorola closed up 34 cents or 2% at $16.61 on the New York Stock Exchange.