Ericsson recorded strong growth across Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA), driven by rising fifth generation (5G) network investments, in spite of the decline in profit in its first quarter 2026 performance.
Ericsson made this known in its 2026 first quarter report on Friday.
The company said its EMEA operations grew by 10 per cent in organic sales, supported by increased network modernisation and expansion of 5G deployments across the region.
On market area performance, the report said Europe, the Middle East and Africa led growth, while South East Asia, Oceania and India recorded a 12 per cent increase, driven by higher network deliveries in India.
It added that North East Asia grew by 15 per cent, reflecting project execution in Japan, while the Americas declined by two per cent due to reduced spending in North America following earlier accelerated investments and industry consolidation.
On Mobile Networks, Ericsson said sales increased by seven per cent organically, supported by strong demand across EMEA and Asia, where network rollouts and upgrades remained active.
The company, however, said Mobile Networks sales declined by eight per cent to SEK 32.9 billion, mainly due to currency impacts.
On Cloud Software and Services, Ericsson said sales grew by four per cent organically, driven by improved delivery in core networks and managed services, in spite of a decline in reported figures.
The report said the Enterprise segment recorded a four per cent organic growth, supported by its Global Communications Platform, although reported sales declined significantly due to the divestment of iconectiv in 2025.
On financial performance, Ericsson said total reported sales fell by 10 per cent to SEK 49.3 billion, largely due to a negative currency impact of SEK 7.8 billion.
It said gross income declined to SEK 23.3 billion from SEK 26.5 billion, while gross margin dipped slightly to 47.2 per cent, reflecting investments in supply chain resilience and changes in business mix.
The report noted that restructuring charges rose sharply to SEK 3.8 billion, mainly driven by workforce reduction initiatives.
Ericsson said adjusted earnings before interest, tax and amortisation (EBITA) stood at SEK 5.6 billion, with a margin of 11.3 per cent, compared with SEK 6.9 billion and 12.6 per cent in the same period of 2025.
It added that free cash flow before mergers and acquisitions rose to SEK 5.9 billion from SEK 2.7 billion, driven by stronger operating cash flow.
Commenting on the results, the President and Chief Executive Officer at Ericsson, Mr Börje Ekholm, said the company remained resilient amid global uncertainties.
“Our first quarter results demonstrate continued resilience in a dynamic environment, with organic sales growth of six per cent.
“Our investments in building a resilient and diversified supply chain have enabled us to deliver consistently for customers in spite of geopolitical and macroeconomic challenges,” Ekholm said.
He noted that rising input costs, particularly in semiconductors driven by artificial intelligence demand, remained a concern, but expressed confidence in addressing the challenge through efficiency measures and collaboration with partners.
Looking ahead, Ericsson said it expects the Radio Access Network market to remain relatively flat, but expressed confidence in outperforming the market through its technology leadership and expansion in enterprise and mission-critical services.
The company also announced plans to commence a share buyback programme of up to SEK 15 billion from April 23, 2026.
