Huawei forecasts 10% increase in sales this year after posting record earnings

Huawei Technologies, China's biggest maker of phone network equipment, forecast a 10 per cent increase in sales this year after posting record earnings on rising demand from wireless carriers for gear.

Revenue will rise from 239 billion yuan last year, the company said today. Net income for 2013 was 21 billion yuan, it said, or 36 per cent more than it reported the previous year.

Huawei is broadening its product lineup with smartphones, tablets and business-computing products and services as it fights cybersecurity concerns that have restricted access for its network equipment in the US and Australia.

The closely held company got 65 per cent of revenue from outside China as it targets more sales to larger customers.

"Thanks to the favourable global macroeconomic and industry environment, as well as the effective execution of our company strategy, Huawei basically achieved our business targets for 2013," Eric Xu, Huawei's deputy chairman and rotating chief executive, said.

Sales at Huawei's carrier network unit rose 4 per cent to 166.5 billion yuan, while the consumer business boosted sales 18 per cent to 57 billion yuan. The enterprise division increased revenue 32 per cent to 15.2 billion yuan, according to the statement. The company's worldwide smartphone sales last year trailed only Samsung and Apple as Huawei boosted its share of the global market to 4.9 per cent from 4 per cent the previous year, researcher IDC reported in January. Huawei plans to boost its global market share to 8 per cent this year by increasing smartphone sales to between 80 million and 100 million units, from more than 50 million last year, Mr Xu forecast in February.

The company’s smartphone ambitions are challenged by a slowing growth outlook for the devices. Smartphone shipment growth worldwide will drop to 8.3 per cent in 2017 and 6.2 per cent in 2018, from a 39 per cent gain last year, IDC projects. – (Bloomberg)