, it continued to branch out into hunting rifles, plastics and the chemical industry. The electronics business, which grew under the Cable Works moniker to be a viable business in its own right, was split into two businesses: consumer electronics and information technology. Cold war deals The growth of the telecommunications industry during the 1970s and 1980s saw the increased exportation of Nokia products to the then-Soviet Union. At the same time, however, the company's telecommunications business was growing in other markets as well, particularly in the United States and Asia. During the 1980s, trade with the Soviet Union was by far the biggest contributor of profits within the Nokia group of companies. The dependency on the shaky Soviet market was a cause concern for Nokia's management, however, and as a result, the company stepped up its efforts to establish more markets in the West. More acquisitions During the 1980s, Nokia made a decision to concentrate its acquisition strategy in western Europe. With Kari Kairamo serving as CEO, the drive toward internationalization became the prime motivating factor within the company, especially for the electronics division. The strategy was SO successful that by 1987, consumer electronics was Nokia's largest business, and the company became the third-largest manufacturer of TV sets in Europe. The company also moved toward the west, joining both domestic and European industrial and economic alliances during the decade. By the end of the decade, however, the death of visionary leader Kari Kairamo and a worsening economic environment forced the company to cut back some of its operations. Kairamo's successor, Simo Vuorilehto, set into motion an extensive program of financial restructuring, and while Nokia's other businesses were suffering heavy losses, the relatively young telecommunications group began to emerge as a sleeping powerhouse ready to assert its growing importance. By the early 1990s, Nokia had all but given up on its forestry and electricity businesses and th