China's Huawei Technologies (HWT.UL) saw its fastest growth in four years in 2023, with a rebound in its consumer segment and income from new businesses like smart car components accelerating its recovery from U.S. sanctions. Revenue rose 9.63% from a year earlier to 704.2 billion yuan ($97.48 billion), with the consumer business contributing most to that figure, growing 17.3% to 251.49 billion yuan. While Huawei did not break down the consumer figure, the segment includes its handset business, which saw a renaissance last year as the company returned to the mainstream 5G smartphones market with the Mate 60, apparently overcoming U.S. restrictions. From 2019, the U.S. has restricted Huawei's access to U.S. technology, accusing the company of being a security risk, which Huawei denies. Last year marked the third consecutive year of growth for the company after revenue plummeted by almost a third in 2021 when the company started to exhaust chip reserves, though revenue remains below its 2020 peak of 891.3 billion yuan. Huawei was relatively muted about its achievement, doing away with the press conference and launch event it has held every year at least since the U.S. restrictions began. In a press release, rotating chairman Ken Hu said the results were in line with forecasts. "We've been through a lot over the past few years. But through one challenge after another, we've managed to grow." At a launch event last year, Meng Wangzhou, Huawei's CFO and the daughter of the company's founder, announced that Huawei was no longer in crisis mode. Net profit in 2023 rose by 144.5% to 87 billion yuan, with the net profit margin more than doubling on a year earlier to 12.35%. Some of that came from ongoing payment from the sale of the Honor smartphone brand, which Huawei sold in November 2020, a company spokesperson said. While the company's core ICT infrastructure business remained stable, its cloud business grew by more than a fifth, generating revenue of 55.3 billion yuan. Source: Reuters

Embattled Chinese tech company Huawei Technologies said its business is "pretty much back on track" despite a U.S. crackdown, with revenue in 2023 hitting its highest level since 2020. In the company's year-end message, rotating chairman Ken Hu said the company "managed to weather the storm," with revenue reaching more than 700 billion yuan ($98.49 billion) in 2023, up more than 9% from 2022. Washington first blacklisted Huawei in 2019 and further tightened export controls on the company in 2020, flagging it as a national security risk, which Huawei has consistently denied. "Hard work has enabled us to survive and grow, but we still have serious challenges ahead of us. Geopolitical and economic uncertainties abound, while technology restrictions and trade barriers continue to have an impact on the world. Together, these forces are reshaping business models and the global value chain," Hu said in the message to customers and employees. "We're pretty much back on track," he said. The rotating chairman said his company has "resumed large-scale supplies of smart devices" thanks to the hard work of R&D and supply teams and had made further progress in ensuring business continuity. Huawei's results come with Beijing having launched several retaliatory measures against the West, including banning the use of iPhones in government affiliates and introducing multiple export controls on key electronics materials such as graphite, gallium and rare earth technologies. The Chinese company on Friday said its device business, which includes smartphones, surpassed expectations for 2023 and it plans to "double down" on efforts in this area for 2024. Huawei unexpectedly released its 5G flagship Mate 60 Pro smartphone with an in-house-developed 5G mobile chip in late August. This was the first such release since the company, once the world's second-largest smartphone maker, lost its access to vital chips due to Washington's restrictions. Nikkei Asia first reported that it aims to double smartphone shipments for 2024. Huawei said its new automotive electronics business has become "significantly more competitive" and that it would look to work with more partners in 2024. The company unveiled an electric SUV on Tuesday with its automaker partner Seres. In November it signed a joint venture deal with Chinese carmaker Changan Automobile. Other major Chinese tech companies have been aggressively pushing into the electric car business. Xiaomi on Thursday unveiled its first electric car, the SU7. Founder and CEO Lei Jun pledged to make Xiaomi one of the world's top 5 automakers and lift China's overall automobile industry. Huawei said its core telecom and enterprise solutions business -- the so-called ICT infrastructure business -- remained solid in 2023, while its cloud business reported healthy growth. The company also said it faces mounting challenges from geopolitical uncertainties, sanctions and macroeconomic conditions but pledged to continue to "crack the hard nuts" to focus on leading fundamental technologies and build complicated software and hardware platforms. Meanwhile, Huawei said it has completed the majority of its shift to a self-developed ERP (enterprise resource planning) system for more than 200 subsidiaries globally, cutting its reliance on foreign software developers such as SAP. ERP software helps companies manage corporate operations, including the management of inventory, procurement, supply chains and human resources. American company SAP has the highest market share for providing ERP systems.   Source: Nikkei Asia

In a twist in the ongoing tale of Washington and Beijing trading accusations over technology and security issues, China has accused the US of hacking into the servers of its telecommunications giant Huawei in 2009. In the past, numerous countries have alleged that China’s government might be using Huawei products for spying purposes and that the firm steals intellectual property from foreign tech companies. But the situation is especially tense between China and the US. The US Congress had started receiving warnings about Huawei as early as 2012. In 2017-18, it restricted several federal agencies from using the telecom giant’s equipment. In 2019, US firms were prohibited from doing business with Huawei and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) designated Huawei as a national security threat. The company was charged with stealing trade secrets, conspiracy, money laundering, bank and wire fraud, flouting US sanctions on Iran, and obstruction of justice. In 2020, foreign semiconductor makers were stopped from shipping products to Huawei without a license. Then in 2022, an FBI investigation found that Huawei equipment could be used to disrupt US military communications, including those related to the nuclear arsenal. Now, President Joe Biden has introduced new bans. Just this year, he signed a law that precludes any Chinese manufacturer from obtaining chips or chipmaking equipment made with US parts anywhere in the world. Global telecom firms have also accused Huawei of stealing trade secrets for long. In 2003, Cisco filed a lawsuit alleging that its source code appeared in Huawei products. In 2017, a US jury found Huawei guilty of stealing intellectual property from T-Mobile. One of the world’s leading providers of fifth-generation (5G) mobile technology, Huawei was founded in 1987 and is based in Shenzhen, China. The firm claims to be a private company owned by employees, but the precise ownership structure is not known. Many countries are worried that the Chinese government exercises massive control over the country’s private companies, including Huawei. This is generally done through heavy regulation and state-backed investment. In addition, companies are required to establish Chinese Communist Party (CCP) branches within them. Not surprisingly, executives of many big Chinese firms are party members, including Alibaba co-founder Jack Ma and Huawei founder Ren.  In 1996, the Chinese government started treating Huawei as a “national champion”. The label is generally given to firms that further the country’s strategic aims. Also, Huawei reported a whopping $138 billion in revenue in 2020, which many countries suspect isn’t possible without government support. This massive support may have helped Huawei to price its equipment far below competitors’ rates. In fact, a European Commission investigation found that Huawei underbid its competitors by up to 70%. Huawei, on the other hand, says its prices are low because of its technological expertise. The company has also distanced itself from the CCP. In 2019, company founder Ren dismissed the accusations that the telco firm helps Beijing to spy on Western governments, stating that Huawei was willing to sign “no-spy” agreements with governments, and that he “would never harm the interest of my customers”. But according to many Western experts, Huawei is simply a state-directed company with a singular goal: to undermine foreign competition by stealing trade secrets and intellectual property, and through artificially low prices.  Ban on Huawei Five major countries — the US, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the UK — have banned or are rolling out bans on Huawei. Huawei will also be kept out of India’s plans to roll out its 5G networks and Japan’s government has effectively banned Huawei.  Other US partners, such as Belgium, Denmark, Estonia, France, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, and Sweden have restricted the use of Huawei equipment. Finland, home to Nokia, has introduced a law that can be used to exclude Huawei from its networks, if a risk of cyber threats and espionage is detected.  Also, Italy has prevented telecoms group Fastweb from signing a deal for Huawei to supply equipment for its 5G core network. In a nutshell, Europe has decided to restrict, rather than ban, Huawei equipment. But a recent court case, filed by one of Huawei’s former managers at its  European headquarters in Düsseldorf, may make the going difficult for Huawei in Europe. The company had failed to comply with the former manager’s request to view the data it had on him and was found to be in breach of European privacy law. During the proceedings, Huawei stated they had deleted the requested information. The former manager had to quit the company in 2018 against his will.  In June this year, the European Commission categorised Huawei as a high-risk entity. Several member states are also making efforts to exclude Huawei from Horizon Europe, the EU’s key funding programme for research and innovation. Despite involvement in projects like developing “massive machine-to-machine communications for 6G”, all “Huawei participants in Horizon Europe” are European-based, not Chinese. Restrictions on Huawei within Horizon Europe could hinder its R&D efforts across as many as 13 European countries. Still, many countries are proceeding with Huawei for 5G wireless network projects and infrastructure.  Especially those participating in China’s Belt and Road Initiative are already using or have agreed to use Huawei equipment. For instance, just this month, Sri Lanka formally inked an agreement with the firm to support digitisation of its schools. Huawei is also helping Malaysia, Russia and a number of Latin American countries build their 5G networks. Several European countries argue that security risks are inherent in all 5G networks, regardless of the supplier. These countries prefer to tighten security measures to minimize risks. many low-income countries are choosing Huawei as it is frequently the cheapest option when compared to the other two major firms involved in 5G network solutions, namely the Finnish firm Nokia and the Swedish firm Ericsson.   The US, Australia and other countries point to vague Chinese intelligence laws to support their claim that China could be using Huawei to spy on them. For example, the Chinese National Security Law states that citizens and enterprises have the “responsibility and obligation to maintain national security”. Similarly, the National Intelligence Law states that Chinese companies must “support, assist, and cooperate with” China’s intelligence-gathering authorities. Huawei’s 5G infrastructure may also contain backdoors that allow the Chinese government to collect massive amounts of data. China’s surveillance laws were passed just as its tech giants, such as Alibaba, ByteDance and Tencent, started gaining market share worldwide. Like Huawei, these firms also often use contractual clauses to transfer user data outside Europe. While these clauses do impose liability, there are no checks or audits. It is left to the clients and consumers to figure out whether the data flows violate their privacy. Countries that have chosen Huawei as a preferred entity in their cost-benefit analysis are likely to be vulnerable to these gaps in Chinese laws, contracts and the company’s promised but increasingly doubtful security architecture. Huawei, in figures $91.5 billion in revenue in 2022 3 billion users of its products and services Operating in 170 countries $75 billion in Chinese state support since 1987 75 commercial 5G launches and trials Source: Asian Lite International

India on Thursday announced its third negative arms import list of 101 more products in the ongoing drive to bolster domestic defense production, with defense minister Rajnath Singh warning that import of weapon systems with foreign software codes can lead to security breaches. Releasing the third “positive indigenization list”, Singh stressed the need to crank up indigenous development of weapon systems, platforms, technologies and ammunition to reduce strategic vulnerabilities and ensure “uninterrupted supplies during wars”. The new list includes some big-ticket products like lightweight tanks, mounted artillery gun systems, naval utility helicopters, and some kinds of drones, medium-range anti-ship and anti-radiation missiles, the imports of which will be progressively banned from December 2022 to December 2027. Citing the example of stringent US action against Chinese telecom giant Huawei on national security grounds, Singh said: “Today, the scope of defense is not limited to borders only. Anyone can now break into a country’s security system with the help of different communication methods. No matter how strong the system is, if it is linked to another country, there is a possibility of a security breach.” “Earlier, equipment such as tanks, howitzers and helicopters were mainly mechanical in nature. It was not possible to control them. But newer defence systems and platforms are electronic and software intensive. They can be controlled or subverted from anywhere,” he added. The third list of 101 items, which adds to the 209 products identified earlier in the first two lists in 2020 and 2021, also includes next-generation offshore patrol vessels, naval anti-drone systems, MF-STAR warship radars, advanced lightweight torpedoes, extended range rockets, land-based loitering munitions and medium-altitude long-endurance UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles). But much like the first two lists, the third one also includes many products that are already in the process of being manufactured in India or are in the R&D or trials phase, negating the need to import them. Acknowledging this, an MoD official said, “The third list lays special focus on equipment and systems which are being developed and are likely to translate into firm orders in next five years. Like the earlier lists, import substitution of ammunition which is a recurring requirement has been given special emphasis this time too.” India may have gradually reduced weapon imports over the last several years but it still remains the world’s largest arms importer, accounting for 11% of global arms imports. The fledgling domestic defence industrial base requires DRDO, defence PSUs and ordnance factories to pull up their socks as well as much larger participation from the domestic private sector and global majors setting up production facilities in India. The government has set an ambitious target of increasing indigenous military procurement from the existing $10 billion to $20 billion by 2025, as well as increasing defence exports to $5 billion by then. Singh, on his part, said the MoD as well as the armed forces will take all necessary steps, including “handholding of the industry” to create an ecosystem that ensures self-reliance and encourages exports. Contracts worth Rs 54,000 crore have been inked for domestic defence procurements since the announcement of the first two lists, with orders worth another Rs 4.5 lakh crore expected over the next five to seven years, he added. The DRDO, in turn, has pitched in to strengthen domestic manufacturing by signing 30 new transfers of technology (ToT) agreements with 25 industries. At the event, Singh handed over the agreements for 21 technologies, which included counter-drone systems, laser directed energy weapons, quantum random number generators, high-explosive materials and anti-mine boots. “The 3rd positive indigenization list reaffirms the government’s unwavering trust on the capability of the Indian defense industry. The three lists provide a shot in the arm to the domestic defence industry to realize the PM’s Aatmanirbhar vision to build a strong India and attain strategic independence in foreign policy - a much desired aim for all nations in the current global geopolitical situation,” said Jayant Patil of the Society of Indian Defense Manufacturers (SIDM).   Source: The Times of India

Huawei is turning to technology for pig farmers as it deals with tough sanctions on its smartphones. The Chinese telecoms giant was stopped from accessing vital components after the Trump administration labelled it a threat to US national security. In response to struggling smartphone sales, Huawei is looking at other sources of revenue for its technology. Along with Artificial Intelligence (AI) tech for pig farmers, Huawei is also working with the coal mining industry. Former US President Donald Trump claimed Huawei can share customer data with the Chinese government, allegations it has repeatedly denied. As a result, the world's largest telecoms equipment maker has been limited to making 4G models as it lacks US government permission to import components for 5G models. Huawei's smartphone sales plunged 42% in the last quarter of 2020 as it struggled with a limited supply of microchips due to the sanctions. Huawei has also been locked out of the development of 5G in a number of countries, including the UK, amid fears over national security. Reports have suggested that it will reduce its manufacturing of smartphones by up to 60% this year, although it said it can't confirm this figure. "The issue here is not like there's any problem with our quality or experiences of the Huawei products. It's not a level playing field for Huawei as Huawei is caught in between the geopolitical tensions," a company spokesman told the BBC. And so, Huawei appears to be looking for other sources of revenue - moving into cloud computing services, smart vehicles and wearable devices. It even has plans for a smart car. But it also has its eye on a few more traditional industries. Pig farming China has the world's biggest pig farming industry and is home to half the world's live hogs. Technology is helping to modernise pig farms with AI being introduced to detect diseases and track pigs. Facial recognition technology can identify individual pigs, while other technology monitors their weight, diet and exercise. Huawei has already been developing facial recognition tech and faced criticism last month for a system that identifies people who appear to be of Uighur origin among image of pedestrians. Other Chinese tech giants, including JD.com and Alibaba, are already working with pig farmers in China to bring new technologies. "The pig farming is yet another example of how we try to revitalise some traditional industries with ICT (Information and Communications Technology) technologies to create more value for the industries in the 5G era," the Huawei spokesman added. Mining coal and data Earlier this month, Huawei founder and chief executive Ren Zhengfei announced a mining innovation lab in northern China's Shanxi Province. He wants to develop technology for coal mines that will lead to "fewer workers, greater safety, and higher efficiency" and enable coal miners to "wear suits and ties" at work. During a round-table meeting at the event, Mr Ren said the company was also expanding into consumer products such as televisions, computers and tablets. "We can still survive even without relying on phone sales," Mr Ren said, adding that it is very unlikely the US will remove Huawei from a blacklist that bars companies from working with the Chinese tech firm. Source: BBC AH

The US Justice Department has filed a host of criminal charges against Chinese telecoms giant Huawei and its chief financial officer, Meng Wanzhou. The charges against the world's second largest smartphone maker include accusations of bank fraud, obstruction of justice and theft of technology, reports BBC. The case could ratchet up tensions between China and the US, and impact the firm's global expansion efforts. Both Ms Meng and Huawei deny the allegations. Ms Meng was arrested in Canada last month at the request of the US for allegedly evading sanctions on Iran. "For years, Chinese firms have broken our export laws and undermined sanctions, often using US financial systems to facilitate their illegal activities. This will end," said US Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross. The indictment alleges Huawei misled the US and a global bank about its relationship with two subsidiaries, Huawei Device USA and Skycom Tech, to conduct business with Iran. US President Donald Trump's administration has reinstated all sanctions on Iran removed under a 2015 nuclear deal and recently imposed even stricter measures, hitting oil exports, shipping and banks. A second case alleges Huawei stole technology from T Mobile used to test smartphone durability, as well as obstructing justice and committing wire fraud. The T-Mobile tech, known as Tappy, mimicked human fingers to test phones. In all, the US has laid 23 charges against the company. "These charges lay bare Huawei's alleged blatant disregard for the laws of our country and standard global business practices," said FBI Director Christopher Wray. "Companies like Huawei pose a dual threat to both our economic and national security." Several countries have raised security concerns about Huawei in recent months, with the US government encouraging companies and other nations not to buy Huawei products. Huawei is one of the largest telecommunications equipment and services providers in the world, recently passing Apple to become the second biggest smartphone maker after Samsung. But the US and other Western nations have been concerned that the Chinese government could use Huawei's technology to expand its spying ability, although the firm insists there is no government control. The arrest of Ms Meng, the daughter of Huawei's founder, infuriated China. She was arrested on 1 December in Canada's western city of Vancouver at the request of the US. She was later granted a C$10m (£5.7m; $7.6m) bail by a local court. But she is under surveillance 24 hours a day and must wear an electronic ankle tag. The US charges come the day after Canada fired its ambassador to China, soon after he publicly said the US extradition request for Ms Meng was flawed. Days after Ms Meng's arrest in December, China detained two Canadians - former diplomat Michael Kovrig and businessman Michael Spavor - in what some have seen as a tit-for-tat response. And in January, China sentenced Canadian Robert Lloyd Schellenberg to death for drug smuggling. Yes. Top Chinese officials are due in Washington this week to discuss ending a trade war between the two countries. US commerce secretary Wilbur Ross stated that the Huawei charges were "wholly separate" from ongoing trade negotiations with China. President Trump's administration has imposed tariffs on $250bn (£190bn) worth of Chinese goods, prompting Beijing to respond with its own tariffs. Both countries agreed last month to suspend new tariffs for 90 days to allow talks. MHK