Worldwide sales of network switch, routers took a major plunge of 23 percent in the first quarter to 27 percent in a year-over-year of 2009, according to Heavy Reading’s Carrier Ethernet Switch/Router Quarterly Market Tracker on Friday.

It fell $423 million in the fiscal 2009 quarter amidst the economic challenges. However it expects to decline more than 20 percent to $1.75 billion in the year end.

Meanwhile, it now sees Carrier Ethernet Switch/Router market to reach $2.74 billion by 2013 as the global economy begins to stabilize.

It also projected, No.1 Cisco decline 3percent of its shares in the first quarter, followed by Alcatel-Lucent of 19 percent and Huawei of nearly 7 percent, and among shares, according to heavy reading.

Electronics Huawei Cisco Systems Switch