Finnish tech firm sees bright 2025 after reporting improved demand from North America and India
30 January 2025 - 14:39
by Supantha Mukherjee
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Stockholm — Finnish technology company Nokia reported stronger-than-expected adjusted operating profit and sales for the fourth quarter on Thursday, helped by higher demand for telecom equipment from mobile operators in North America and India, and forecast an upbeat 2025.
Net sales rose 10% to €5.98bn, compared analysts’ estimate of €5.74bn in a survey conducted by LSEG.
The company said sales at its network infrastructure business rose 17% due to a strong recovery in demand from communication service providers, notably in North America.
“What we have seen previously is that when the markets turn, the North American market turns first, both up and down,” CEO Pekka Lundmark said, adding he expects improving market trends to continue in 2025.
The company expects full-year profit of between €1.9bn and €2.4bn, compared with an estimate of €2.13bn on LSEG Workspace.
Nokia and its Nordic rival Ericsson have reported double-digit growth in North America due to a rebound in demand after years of weakness. Demand from Indian clients, which dropped significantly after rapid growth in 2023, is also recovering.
To tap the AI boom, Nokia agreed last year to buy Infinera for $2.3bn to tap into the billions of dollars in investment pouring into data centres such as the $500bn Stargate project backed by OpenAI, SoftBank and Oracle.
“We have interest in all data centres and assuming that the Stargate project will deliver, it will be an exciting market opportunity for us,” Lundmark said.
He now expects the Infinera deal to close by the end of the first quarter, instead of by the end of the first half of the year.
Comparable earnings before interest and tax rose to €1.14bn, beating the €960m expected by analysts in the LSEG survey.
Support our award-winning journalism. The Premium package (digital only) is R30 for the first month and thereafter you pay R129 p/m now ad-free for all subscribers.
Nokia fourth-quarter earnings beat estimates
Finnish tech firm sees bright 2025 after reporting improved demand from North America and India
Stockholm — Finnish technology company Nokia reported stronger-than-expected adjusted operating profit and sales for the fourth quarter on Thursday, helped by higher demand for telecom equipment from mobile operators in North America and India, and forecast an upbeat 2025.
Net sales rose 10% to €5.98bn, compared analysts’ estimate of €5.74bn in a survey conducted by LSEG.
The company said sales at its network infrastructure business rose 17% due to a strong recovery in demand from communication service providers, notably in North America.
“What we have seen previously is that when the markets turn, the North American market turns first, both up and down,” CEO Pekka Lundmark said, adding he expects improving market trends to continue in 2025.
The company expects full-year profit of between €1.9bn and €2.4bn, compared with an estimate of €2.13bn on LSEG Workspace.
Nokia and its Nordic rival Ericsson have reported double-digit growth in North America due to a rebound in demand after years of weakness. Demand from Indian clients, which dropped significantly after rapid growth in 2023, is also recovering.
To tap the AI boom, Nokia agreed last year to buy Infinera for $2.3bn to tap into the billions of dollars in investment pouring into data centres such as the $500bn Stargate project backed by OpenAI, SoftBank and Oracle.
“We have interest in all data centres and assuming that the Stargate project will deliver, it will be an exciting market opportunity for us,” Lundmark said.
He now expects the Infinera deal to close by the end of the first quarter, instead of by the end of the first half of the year.
Comparable earnings before interest and tax rose to €1.14bn, beating the €960m expected by analysts in the LSEG survey.
Reuters
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