Huawei Technologies Co (華為) posted its third straight quarter of growth, declaring a return to normalcy after overcoming a plethora of US restrictions this year.
Huawei’s sales rose 7.2 percent to 191 billion yuan (US$27.47 billion) in the quarter ending this month, after carving out new income streams from areas such as smart vehicles and cloud services, company data showed.
Last year’s sales stood at 636.9 billion yuan, the Shenzhen-based company said, up marginally from a year earlier.
Photo: Bloomberg
Huawei is trying to open up new markets and businesses after US tech export restrictions gutted its smartphone business — briefly the world’s largest — and curtailed the sale of advanced gear in developed markets. Among those trade restrictions is a ban on contract chipmakers producing semiconductors designed by Huawei, crippling its HiSilicon design business.
Huawei rotating chairman Eric Xu (徐直軍) in a new year’s message to employees warned of macroeconomic uncertainty next year.
However, Xu said longer-term demand for technology remains intact. He did not specify how the company might overcome export restrictions, but Huawei has spent much of the past three years developing, researching and sourcing alternatives to US components.
“In 2022, we successfully pulled ourselves out of crisis mode. US restrictions are now our new normal, and we’re back to business as usual,” Xu said.
“The macro environment may be rife with uncertainty, but what we can be certain about is that digitalization and decarbonization are the way forward, and they’re where future opportunities lie,” he added.
Huawei has also sought out alternative sources of income by selling patents, technology services and wireless gear to new customers ranging from automakers to coal mines and industrial parks. It levies royalties from the world’s largest smartphone brands, including Apple Inc and Samsung Electronics Co.
The company has signed more than 20 patent license agreements this year, Huawei global head of IP Alan Fan (樊志勇) said.
“We’ve managed to keep our heads above the water because we fought together,” Xu wrote. “2023 will be the first year that we return to business as usual with external restrictions still in place.”
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