Lenovo is reported to have shut its east EMEA business unit, which managed its smartphone activities in Eastern Europe, Russia and CIS countries.

Vedomosti reported the head of the unit, Alexey Klochkov, had already left the company. Responsibility for Eastern Europe has now been shifted into Lenovo’s Western European unit, while Russia and CIS are now being handled by the vendor’s Emerging Markets unit.

In its most recent quarterly results (to 31 December 2017), Lenovo said the unit, which offers devices using the Lenovo and Motorola brands, had witnessed a “slower brand transition in emerging areas in EMEA”, which impacted shipments.

The company faced tough competition in Russia from rivals including Chinese vendors, and a shift in the market to favour lower-cost devices.

Lenovo is in the process of a “worldwide resource action” which also saw job cuts in Motorola’s US operation.