Samsung Electronics Co., the world's largest smartphone maker, overtook Nokia Corp. in terms of handset shipments in its home country during the first quarter, data showed Wednesday.

Samsung sold 211,000 handsets in Finland, where Nokia is headquartered, during the January-March period, accounting for 36.1 percent of the European country's handset market, according to the data by market researcher IDC Corp.

Nokia came in second with shipments of 196,000 handsets or a 33.6 percent market share, the data showed.

In the first quarter of last year, Samsung garnered a 28 percent share in Finland and Nokia clinched 48 percent, showing Nokia is losing its home-field advantage in the face of strong demand for smartphones by Samsung.

Apple Inc. came in third place with 14 percent, and other manufacturers made up the remaining 16 percent of sales in Nokia's homeland, according to the data.

Nokia sales have slowly been falling as Samsung and Apple sales have gradually been rising. Samsung was able to claim the largest market share thanks to their popular Galaxy lineup, according to IDC.

Samsung emerged as the top global seller of mobile handsets and smartphones in the first quarter of last year, outstripping Nokia Corp. and Apple Inc.

In the first quarter of the year, Samsung Electronics sold smartphones worth $23.62 billion in the January-March period, regaining the top spot lost to the iPhone maker in the fourth quarter of last year. (Yonhap News)