Reliance Jio, the telecom subsidiary of Reliance Industries, plans to ink a $1.7 billion (₹13,987 crore) deal with Nokia to buy 5G network gear. The signing could occur as soon as this week in Nokia’s home city of Helsinki, Finland, per an Economic Times report.
What Happened? Last October, Jio selected Nokia as a significant supplier as it prepared to broaden wireless services in India. Jio has already secured $11 billion (₹90,507 crore) worth of 5G airwaves in an auction last August and launched 5G services in multiple cities. Additionally, Jio is collaborating with Google to produce an affordable 5G smartphone.
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Banks like HSBC, JP Morgan, and Citigroup are financing Jio’s 5G acquisitions. Furthermore, Finnvera, the European export credit agency, is providing assurances to these banks to allow them to give offshore loans to Jio.
In related news, Jio has partnered with Swedish telecom firm Ericsson to establish a standalone 5G network in India. Moreover, Jio recently launched a 4G-feature phone targeting customers yet to shift to smartphones, although market analysts do not expect this to shake up the Indian telecom market significantly.
Price Action: Following the news, Reliance shares, a key player in the blue-chip Nifty 50, surged by up to 2.3% before closing at ₹2,633.30, making it one of the index’s top gainers on Thursday.
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