Huawei revenues fall 32% as US sanctions bite

Chinese telecom giant Huawei on Friday reported a 32% fall in the first nine months of the year as US sanctions continued to hit smartphone sales.

Huawei chairman Guo Ping said that the company’s business-to-consumer operations had been “significantly impacted” by measures introduced by former US president Donald Trump.

January-September sales volume fell to 455.8 billion yuan ($71.3bn), the unlisted company said in a sparse statement.

Trump banned Huawei from the massive US market over concerns that it could pose a cybersecurity and espionage threat. The firm was effectively denied access to key parts such as microchips and Google’s Android operating system.

US officials say Huawei is a security risk and might assist Chinese spying, which the company denies. Washington has consistently lobbied European and other allies to exclude the tech giant when tender to upgrade phone networks.

Guo added that its telecom carrier segment had "remained stable" during the period, adding that the company was "confident (that) we will continue to create practical value for our customers".

The company’s revenue had already fallen last year, partly due to the sale of its budget phone brand Honor to help it keep access to components and survive.

Huawei's problems have forced it to refocus the business into areas such as enterprise computing, technology for intelligent vehicles, and software.

The company has released its own smartphone operating system, HarmonyOS, and says it expects to pass 150 million users by the end of this year.