Nokia Networks Q4 boosted by strong North America sales

Nokia has reported its results for Q4 and the full year 2014 showing growth in the networks business aided by strong sales in the North American market. The kit maker’s services also returned to year-on-year growth for the first time since the final quarter of 2012.

The networking division posted an 8% increase to €3.4 billion in the final quarter compared to the same period in the previous year. The Finnish infrastructure vendor said this was largely due to its strong performance in North America, a stark contrast to rival Ericsson’s dwindling sales in the region.

The company also achieved growth in its mobile broadband business, which went up by 13% in the last quarter. Nokia said this stemmed from strong overall core networking technologies and modest growth in radio technologies. However, LTE growth was somewhat offset by a decline in mature radio technologies.

Nokia’s Global Services division’s sales also grew in the last quarter, achieving a 3% year-on-year increase, which the vendor said was largely due to growth in its systems integration offering.

The networks unit achieved non-IFRS operating profit of €470 million, up 14% compared to the same time the previous year.

“2014 was a time of significant change for Nokia and we ended the year in a renewed position of strength,” Nokia’s President and CEO, Rajeev Suri said. “The power of the new Nokia could be seen in our fourth quarter results. All of our businesses delivered strong year-on-year net sales growth. Profitability was excellent in Nokia Networks, and we were particularly pleased with our net sales growth in North America and core networks.”

HERE continued its momentum in the automotive segment, and the early reception to the Nokia N1 tablet has been remarkably favorable, showing the ongoing power of the Nokia brand and the long-term potential of our brand licensing business.”

Overall, Nokia’s annual 2014 sales were flat at €12.7 billion (€12.7 billion also in 2013). Despite the strong 4^th quarter results, the vendor’s shares took a hit on the stock markets falling by 5.9%. This was probably due to the firm’s admission it expects the networking division could shrink this year.