Many Western technology companies have made exit plans for Russia


The Ericsson logo is seen at its headquarters in Stockholm, Sweden on June 14, 2018. REUTERS/Olof Swahenberg/File Photo

STOCKHOLM/MOSCOW, Aug 29 (Reuters) – Western technology companies including Ericsson ( ERICb.ST ) and Nokia ( NOKIA.HE ) announced plans to pull out of Russia entirely, following Dell ( DELL.N ) last week. Accelerates climbing speed.

Ericsson said it would gradually withdraw from Russia in the coming months, while Finnish rival Nokia also said it planned to exit its Russian business by the end of the year.

Switzerland-based Logitech International ( LOGN.S ) said in March it would wind down its remaining operations in Russia.

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Moscow After Ukraine sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine on February 24, many Western companies are selling or exiting their Russian businesses.

According to Paolo Pescatore, an analyst at PP Foresight, the process requires careful planning given the ongoing political challenges.

“We are now seeing the fruits of the exit plans that have been in the works for months,” Pescatore said. “They all followed now.”

While Ericsson suspended business in Russia indefinitely in April, Nokia said it would go a step further and pull out of the country entirely. Read more

“By the end of the year, most of our employees in Russia will move from Nokia and leave all of our offices,” a Nokia spokesman said on Monday.

Ericsson, which put employees on paid leave earlier this year, recorded 900 million crowns ($95 million) in the first quarter for property impairment and other special costs related to the move.

It has about 400 employees in Russia and said it would provide financial assistance to those affected.

Nokia, which had about 2,000 employees in Russia, said its remaining operations in the country were related to maintaining critical networks to comply with contractual and humanitarian obligations.

With Ericsson and Nokia pulling out of Russia, the country’s mobile operators MTS and Tele2 ( TEL2b.ST ) will become dependent on Chinese companies such as Huawei ( HWT.UL ) and ZTE ( 000063.SZ ).

MTS and Tele2 declined to comment.

Russian daily Kommersant first reported Ericsson’s exit and said some of its support staff would be transferred to a new company in Russia to be set up by senior managers. Erickson did not comment on the new company.

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Reporting by Supantha Mukherjee in Stockholm and Alexander Marrow in Moscow; Editing by Matt Scuffham, Stine Jacobsen, Jan Harvey and Barbara Lewis

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.



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