Nokia's Credit Upgrade and North Carolina Contract Anchor a Week of AI-Driven Swings

Nokia shares rose 2.0% on Tuesday, a move that lacked a clear single trigger even as the company stacked up a credit upgrade, a new US network contract and a long-range traffic forecast in the space of a week. The advance came on the heels of a broader recovery in technology stocks following the previous week's selloff, which media reports tied largely to sector-wide jitters over the pace of investment in AI data centres.

Hotwire Taps Nokia for AI-Ready Build

Hotwire Communications has selected Nokia to construct a next-generation network in North Carolina, an order Nokia announced on 4 November. The build is designed to be ready for AI network architectures and is expected to go live in early 2027. Nokia's 7750 Service Router line is slated for deployment in the project.

The contract landed roughly a week before the latest share move and sits alongside a separate announcement involving Telefónica and the Juan XXIII Foundation. That social innovation pilot, built around immersive telepresence, covers 16 participants across four households and aims to bolster the independence of people with intellectual disabilities.

A Forecast, Not a Measurement

Nokia's own outlook, published on 4 November, projects that artificial intelligence will account for 44% of global network traffic by 2035. Total monthly data volumes are seen climbing to almost 3,789 exabytes by then — a projection rather than a reading of traffic already on the wire.

The company argues that rising upload traffic from users toward the network, combined with the need for low latency, will force changes to network infrastructure. Autonomous AI agents are expected to drive the sharpest growth: Nokia forecasts roughly a 160-fold increase in that traffic by 2035, while data generated by physical AI applications is projected to rise 105-fold over the same period.

Moody's Returns Nokia to Investment Grade

Media reports indicate Moody's Ratings lifted Nokia's long-term issuer rating and its rating on senior unsecured obligations from Ba1 to Baa3, with a positive outlook. The upgrade, reported about a week ago, did not shield the stock from the sector-driven volatility that followed, according to those reports.

Ownership Snapshot and Treasury Stock

A filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission submitted on Thursday disclosed an economically attributable 3.8% stake in Nokia for FMR LLC and Abigail P. Johnson, reflecting holdings as of 30 September. The disclosure documents a position at that date rather than a fresh purchase or sale.

Separately, Nokia confirmed the previously announced transfer of roughly 847,000 of its own shares to participants in its equity-based compensation programmes, issued free of charge. Following the transfer, the company retained approximately 80.3 million treasury shares.