HELSINKI, Finland — Nokia, a company that makes equipment for both wireless and fixed networks, reported strong results for the fourth quarter on Thursday. The company cited strong demand for 5G technology and an improved product portfolio.
The company, which is based in Espoo, Finland, made a net profit of 929 million euros ($1 billion) from October to December, which is 27% more than the 731 million euros it made in the same time period the year before.
The net income attributable to shareholders increased from 727 million euros the previous year to 931 million euros this year.
Nokia’s sales increased by 16% to 7.4 billion euros. During the quarter, the company’s performance exceeded analyst expectations.
Another Year Of Growth For Nokia
CEO Pekka Lundmark said that the highlight of the fourth quarter was the “stellar” performance of the company’s network infrastructure business unit, which grew revenue by 14% “with significant operating margin expansion.”
Lundmark said that 2023 would be “another year of growth” for Nokia, but he added, “we are aware of the uncertain economic outlook.”
Nokia reported sales of 24.9 billion euros for the fiscal year 2022, up 12% from the previous year, with a net profit of 2.5 billion euros, up 18% year on year.
“We said at the beginning of 2022 that it would be a year of acceleration, and we delivered,” Lundmark said. “The Nokia team navigated geopolitical, economic, and supply challenges, put our strategy into action, and delivered a strong full-year performance.”
The Latest Generation Of Broadband Technology
Nokia, along with Swedish company Ericsson, Chinese company Huawei, and South Korean company Samsung, is one of the world’s top suppliers of 5G, the latest generation of broadband technology.
Nokia announced earlier this week that it had signed a multi-year license patent agreement with Samsung, allowing the Korean company to use Nokia’s technology in its products in exchange for royalties.
Lundmark told reporters on Thursday that Nokia is almost done leaving the Russian market. This decision was made public after Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022.
The Finnish company criticized what Moscow did and said it would move its research and development out of Russia, where it employed a few thousand people. Nokia also announced that it would stop selling its equipment and software in the country.
“We are now at the final meters of implementing the exit program that was published in April,” Lundmark said. “We will not deliver anything there once we have left.”
SOURCE – (AP)
