Nokia to close almost all sites in mainland China by year end, sources say

Retreating from China, once Nokia’s largest single-country market globally, would mark an acquiescence to domestic competition

Finnish telecoms equipment giant Nokia plans to cut most of its workforce in mainland China and close sites in stages by year-end, marking a sweeping retreat after more than four decades as it loses ground to domestic rivals, according to sources familiar with the situation.

One Shanghai-based source said teams in both Nokia’s mobile networks and network infrastructure businesses in mainland China were set to undergo lay-offs in batches, with most of the cuts expected to be completed by the end of this year.

While the total number of employees who would be affected remains unclear, Nokia had about 7,200 staff in mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan at the end of 2025, its annual report showed, with sites in cities such as Beijing, Shanghai, Hangzhou, Chengdu and Qingdao.

The sources said Nokia announced its plan to scale back mainland China operations earlier this month during an internal online video conference from its Helsinki headquarters.

Only after-sales services would remain in China, which would constitute “basically a gradual exit from the market”, one person said.

A Shanghai-based former Nokia employee who had worked in its software testing division said he left the company in the past few weeks, receiving an “N+3” severance package – compensation based on years of service, “N”, plus three months’ pay.