Huawei Technologies posted its annual revenue report for 2015 Friday, registering its biggest growth in the last seven years. The China-based telecom equipment maker said the total revenue spiked 37 percent to ¥395 billion ($61.10 billion) in 2015 compared to the previous year and the net profit also rose 33 percent to ¥36.9 billion ($5.7 billion), from ¥27.9 billion a year earlier.
Huawei, which is currently the third-largest smartphone manufacturer, witnessed sizable growth in all the three segments of its business groups. The company attributed its growth to China's adoption of 4G mobile technology and strong sales in the global smartphone segment.
Huawei's consumer devices division, which includes smartphones and tablets, recorded highest growth within the company's business groups. The Shenzhen-based company's consumer devices business group reported a 73 percent boost in annual revenue to ¥129.1 billion ($19.9 billion) in 2015 on a year-on-year basis.
Huawei became the first Chinese smartphone maker to exceed 100 million shipments in 2015, defying a market slowdown. The company shipped 108 million smartphones last year, enabling the company to post an increase of 44% over 2014.
Huawei said the growth in its consumer devices division was mainly due to an increased demand for premium products and the company's growing brand recognition. During the Mobile World Congress in February, Richard Yu, chief executive of Huawei's consumer business group, said the company is poised to overtake Apple as the second largest smartphone company in the next three years and hopes to surpass Samsung by 2021, CNBC reported.
Huawei launched its own online store to sell Honor smartphones and accessories in India Friday. The announcement followed the government's decision to allow 100 percent FDI in ecommerce market places. The company has partnered with Flipkart and Amazon in the past to sell its devices online in India. The company has also made efforts to boost its brand image by signing up celebrity footballer Lionel Messi and badminton player Saina Nehwal as its brand ambassadors. All of this add to the company's efforts to improve its consumer devices business group.
Huawei's carrier division, the core of the company's business, was the largest contributor in the 2015 annual revenue. It registered a growth of 21 percent to ¥232.2 billion ($35.8 billion). Finally, the enterprise business group, which builds private networks for companies, recorded a 44 percent increase in revenue to ¥27.6 billion (US$4.3 billion) last year.
"We wrapped up 2015 in a robust financial position, with stable cash flow from operating activities, increased cash availability, and effective risk control," Sabrina Meng, Huawei's CFO, said in a statement. "In 2016, we will continue to focus on our pipe strategy, staying customer-centric in all we do. We will press ahead with management transformation projects to better prepare ourselves for the future, and continue boosting the efficiency of our operations to ensure sustainable growth."
Huawei said it is steadily investing in research and development. Last year, the company said, it invested 15 percent of its annual revenue in R&D, taking the total R&D investments to more than ¥240 billion (approximately US$37 billion) in the last 10 years.
