While Finland’s tech sector is still doing relatively well, the outlook for technology industry is slightly more negative than previously thought as orders fall, according to a group representing technology companies.
Chief economist Jukka Palokangas from the Technology Industries of Finland says the number of orders that member firms received over the summer has slightly dipped.
He said compared to the first quarter of this year, orders went down by one percent during the second quarter, from April to June.
The number of orders fell further in July, while the number of new bid requests has also dropped, according to the group.
Palokangas says global economic uncertainty is putting pressure on technology companies, and that the ongoing international trade war is raising the costs of raw materials.
“It's necessary that Finland and the EU make use of all their political prestige and trade policy skills to solve these problems. Protectionism has only negative effects on Finnish exports,” Palokangas says.
On the whole though, Finland’s technology companies still benefit from strong order books and have hired 10,000 new employees since last year, Palokangas says.