BEIJING (AP) – Chinese tech giant Huawei yesterday reported its revenue rose three per cent over a year earlier in the first half of 2023 and its profit margin widened despite sanctions that block access to United States (US) processor chips and other technology.
China’s first global tech brand has responded to US curbs that devastated its smartphone brand by increasing emphasis on selling network gear to hospitals, ports, electric car brands and other industrial customers it believes will be less vulnerable to sanctions.
Revenue in the six months ending in June rose 3.1 per cent to CNY310.9 billion, Huawei Technologies Ltd said. It gave no profit figure but said its profit margin was 15 per cent, which would be about CNY45 billion and an increase over the 4.3 per cent margin in the first quarter of this year.
Sales by its infrastructure unit were CNY167.2 billion, according to Huawei. Consumer sales were CNY103.5 billion. Sales by the fledgling automotive unit, which supplies network and other technology for electric cars, were CNY1 billion.
Huawei struggled after then-president Donald Trump cut off access to US processor chips and other technology in a feud with Beijing over technology and security. American officials say the company is a security risk and might facilitate Chinese spying, which Huawei denies.
In 2020, then-chairman Eric Xu said the company was back to business as usual despite sanctions.
The company is the biggest global maker of network equipment for phone and Internet companies. It sold its lower-priced Honor smartphone brand in 2020.
It still sells handsets under its Huawei brand but focuses on the China market while sales abroad have plunged.
Huawei reported earlier 2022 profit fell 70 per cent to CNY35.6 billion while sales rose 0.9 per cent to CNY642.3 billion.
Half of Huawei’s 207,000 employees work in research and development.
The company said it has been able to develop replacements for US components. Huawei said it has made breakthroughs in developing its own design tools for processor chips.
