Nokia has good Black Friday, won't be sharing with NSN

Given red-headed stepchild cash 'for the last time'

By Brid-Aine Parnell, 28th November 2011

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Nokia's shares lifted today after strong sales in the US on Black Friday and the news that it won't be giving Nokia Siemens Networks (NSN) any additional capital.

Analysts reckon Nokia will enjoy greater till takings than on last year's Black Friday, a day that gave all smartphone and PC makers, including Apple, Dell, Asus and RIM, a bit of a boost.

But Nokia also had some sugar on top of that good news with the leak of a letter from NSN chief exec Rajeev Suri that said the company wouldn't be getting any extra cash from parents Nokia or Siemens.

The letter, intended for employees but seen by Reuters, reported that Nokia and Siemens had given NSN money "for the last time".

Last week, NSN announced restructuring plans that included layoffs of 17,000 workers by the end of 2013, a move that prompted some analysts to speculate that the telecoms firm would seek more dosh from its parents.

NSN has continuously struggled to make ends meet and is now trying to focus on mobile broadband and services in a bid to become profitable.

"Our profitability remains far too low, with huge net losses since the start of the company. We continue to burn cash and have consistently generated negative free cash flow," Suri said in the letter.

"We have too many businesses that have never produced adequate returns and regions that continually deliver losses."

Nokia's shares were up 7.09 per cent at 1600 GMT on the New York exchange. ®

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