Motorola, the struggling US mobile phone manufacturer, recorded the worst performance among the top five mobile phone makers in the first quarter of 2009 by reporting a 46 per cent fall in handset unit sales.

Motorola, once the world’s largest mobile phone handset maker, sold 14.7m mobiles in the three months to March 31, compared with 27.4m in the same period last year. The company reported a group net loss of $231m, up from $194m in the first quarter of 2008. Motorola’s shares were down more than 7 per cent at $5.53 in New York.