By Gianluca Lo Nostro

(Reuters) -Finland’s Nokia reported third-quarter profit well ahead of expectations on Thursday, helped by strong optical and cloud demand, including sales to AI-driven data centers after its Infinera acquisition.

Comparable operating profit in the quarter through September reached 435 million euros ($507 million). Analysts polled by LSEG expected the same metric to reach 342 million euros.

U.S. tariffs, a market slowdown and a weaker dollar had weighed on Nokia’s business this year, prompting it in July to issue a profit warning.

The company had lost ground in the North American telecoms market as U.S. carrier AT&T phases out Nokia’s 5G contract in favour of Nordic rival Ericsson, which won a $14 billion deal in 2023.

However, quarterly group net sales rose 12%

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