Chinese ‘spy’ firm profits up 140% despite sanctions placed by US and allies
Huawei, the Chinese tech company at the heart of an international sanctions and spying row between China and the US and its allies, has said its profits more than doubled in 2023.
The technology firm said profits rose to ¥87bn (£9.5bn), an increase of more than 140 per cent from the same period a year ago. Its 2023 revenue grew 9.6 per cent to ¥704.2bn, Huawei said in its annual report.
Huawei had its fastest growth since 2019 when the US cut it off from advanced computer chips and other US technology, accusing the company of being a security risk, which Huawei denies. American officials also blocked US carriers from buying from the firm and asked allies not to use Huawei’s telecoms equipment.
The UK, along with other US allies, banned Huawei from Britain’s 5G infrastructure, considering it to be a security threat. The tech company was accused of having close links to the Chinese government.
The EU Commission also urged its member countries to restrict the role of Huawei and the Chinese partially state-owned technology company ZTE in Europe.
Huawei’s mobile phone handset sales plummeted in Europe after US sanctions made them incompatible with Google apps, including Gmail, Google Maps and Google Play. The bans came close to knocking the company out of the smartphones market.
Huawei chairman Ken Hu said: “We’ve been through a lot over the past few years. But through one challenge after another, we’ve managed to grow.”
Last year, Meng Wanzhou, Huawei’s finance chief and the daughter of the company’s founder, announced that Huawei was no longer in crisis mode.
Huawei said that its mobile Mate 60 handsets and HarmonyOS, its own operating system, had “received wide acclaim”, while its consumer unit posted a 17.3 per cent increase in revenue in 2023.
The company said its consumer business grew by “overcoming major technical barriers and diving deep into the industry’s most challenging issues”.
Huawei’s revenues from cloud computing rose 22 per cent. It is also offering artificial intelligence services through the cloud.
It said its car business grew by 128 per cent in 2023 to ¥4.7bn in 2023, from ¥2.1bn in 2022. The firm has said it planned to spin off its smart car components business into a joint venture with fellow car-maker Changan while also displaying its Aito model, which it makes with Chinese manufacturer Seres, in showrooms.
Huawei is fast emerging as a symbol of China’s determination to thwart Washington’s curbs.
The launch of new mobile phones fuelled patriotic fervour among Chinese consumers that boosted domestic sales by 64 per cent.
At the same time sales of Apple’s iPhones have declined in China, falling by 24 per cent.
Last year Beijing told its civil servants they were banned from using Apple and other foreign-branded phones for work purposes or from bringing them in the office.
Huawei is now said to be building a network of chip-making plants to underpin its longer-term ambitions in areas such as electric vehicles and artificial intelligence.
“In 2024, we will further expand our presence in the high-end market by working with ecosystem partners worldwide to bring more innovative products and services to consumers across the globe,” the company said.
