Nokia has warned that its full-year profits this year and next will be lower than previously thought because of acute competition and costs related to new-generation 5G networks.

After selling its ailing handset unit, Nokia has turned a fourth-quarter net profit of €443m with sales increasing nearly 10%, partly buoyed by strong growth in North America.

Don’t call it a comeback yet. But Nokia is thinking about how to revive its brand name in consumer markets just months after selling off its former flagship mobile phones business to Microsoft for more than $7bn (€8.7bn).

Telecommunications and wireless equipment maker Nokia saw its shares surge today after it reported higher profits and an improved earnings outlook in the wake of the sale of its troubled handset division to Microsoft.

Nokia said it continued to be hit by fierce competition in the first quarter with a 30% fall in sales of mobile devices, the troubled unit it sold to Microsoft last week.