Stocks In Focus: Nokia Corporation (NYSE:NOK) & General Motors (NYSE:GM)

General Motors Company(NYSE:GM) said late Thursday it planned to spend about $220 million to make the next generation of its Chevrolet Cruze compact cars. The investment will be made in upgrading the equipment at its two Ohio factories where the cars are manufactured.

The investment in new equipment as well as upgrading it will ensure that the preservation of more than 5,000 jobs at factories in the said two factories, the company said.

The next-generation Chevy Cruzes, that are expected to be due in the fall of 2014 and sold as a 2015 model, will be the first vehicle to use a new GM global platform that could be the basic platform for nearly 2.5 million compact sedans and crossovers a year by 2018.

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The new Cruze will have a fresh styling, nicer interiors and better fuel economy compared to the versions on sale now.  The Cruze now gets 35 to 42 miles per gallon on the highway depending on engine and transmission.

The Chevy Cruze is GM's second-best selling car with nearly 129,000 sold so far this year.

The Lordstown factory complex has built 500,000 Cruzes since production began in September of 2010.

Meanwhile, Nokia Corporation (ADR)(NYSE:NOK) plans to partner Verizon Communication to sell its new Lumia phones running on Microsoft’s Windows phone 8 operating system. The new phone is expected to be unveiled on September 5, when Nokia has planned a media event jointly with Microsoft.

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A collaboration between Nokia and Verizon is welcome news for the Finnish handset maker as this means that it will have three of the top four U.S. carriers under its stable, offering Lumia handsets. For Verizon it will increase the number of smartphones in its garage and reduce its dependence on Apple and Android-based phones.

Shares of NOK soared 11.11% to 3-month high of $3.20 on Thursday, extending its weekly gains to 16%.