The US government is considering a stake, the shares are rising.
Washington / Stockholm. Calls by US Attorney General William Barr for government support for Huawei rivals Ericsson and Nokia have fueled the shares of two European network suppliers. The titles of the two Scandinavian groups were clearly up on Friday afternoon.
The US and allies should consider securing a “controlling stake” in the two outfitters to face Huawei in building the much-needed 5G networks, Barr said earlier. This could be done by the state or through a consortium of American and allied companies, he added at a conference in Washington that dealt with Chinese industrial espionage.
Putting such financial power behind one or both of the companies will significantly strengthen them in competition with Huawei, Barr said. The companies together have a market capitalization of around $ 50 billion. Which pots Barr wants to use to finance his deliberations remained unclear.
The United States has been warning about possible espionage and sabotage by Huawei for months and is pressing not to use the technology of the group to build the 5G networks. The private company is accused of being heavily influenced by the communist leadership in Beijing. Huawei has repeatedly rejected the allegations.
Neither Nokia nor Ericsson wanted to comment on Barr’s statements. However, these called on Ericsson co-owner and financial investor Cevian. A US interest is positive for Sweden, the company and its shareholders, said Cevian manager Christer Gardell. A possible deal could in no way take the current price of the completely undervalued share as the basis.
The Nokia share has been weakening for a long time: it has lost 25 percent on a one-year view and 40 on a five-year view. Ericsson has been up slightly for a year, and the share has lost almost a fifth in five years. (Reuters / left)
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