Huawei said its business remained robust in the first half of 2019, despite the US ban inflicted on the company in May. Revenues for the six months rose 23.2 percent to CNY 401.3 billion, suggesting a slowdown in Q2 after 39 percent growth reported for Q1. The company's net profit margin for H1 was 8.7 percent.
Chairman Liang Hua said that revenue grew fast until May, and the group continues to see growth even after the US ban. "That's not to say we don't have difficulties ahead. We do, and they may affect the pace of our growth in the short term."
Nevertheless, Huawei plans to continue to invest, including spending CNY 120 billion on R&D this year. "We'll get through these challenges, and we're confident that Huawei will enter a new stage of growth after the worst of this is behind us," Liang said.
Smartphone shipments up 24%
The consumer business made up over half of revenues in H1, at CNY 220.8 billion. Huawei's smartphone shipments (including Honor phones) reached 118 million units, up 24 percent year-on-year. The company said it also saw rapid growth in shipments of tablets, PCs, and wearables.
At Huawei's carrier business, H1 sales reached CNY 146.5 billion. The company said it saw steady growth in production and shipment of equipment for wireless networks, optical transmission, data communications, IT, and related product domains. To date, Huawei has secured 50 commercial 5G contracts and shipped more than 150,000 base stations around the world.
