After the Wall Street Journal reported that Nokia Oyj is planning to replace current CEO Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo, the major phone maker’s trading numbers in Helsinki rose up to 5.2% July 20, 2010.
Nokia has approached several US-based technology companies for the position of CEO and will decide by the end of July, according to the Wall Street Journal report, which mentioned unidentified people who had known about the situation. Arja Suominen, Nokia’s spokeswoman, refused to comment.
According to Ulf Moritzen, who works with Hamburg-based Aramea Asset Management and helps manage Nokia’s shares, getting a new CEO will do the company good. He added that it is important for Nokia to react quickly to economic changes.
A new chief executive officer can help in delivering products that can compete with leading portable devices, such as Research In Motion’s Blackberry and Apple’s iPhone, especially when Nokia has not been able to provide a smartphone that has all the mass appeal that the iPhone possesses.
To protect its market share, the Finnish phone manufacturer has focused on cutting prices and sacrificing profits.
Nokia’s stock increased as much as 35₵ to €7.115, which is the biggest gain ever since May 10, 2010. As of 10:23 of July 20, the stock was up 3.45%. Before this rise, shares declined by 24% this year.
