Huawei captures no. 2 spot as 2009 net profit doubles

Huawei said its 2009 full-year revenues surged 19 per cent from 2008 reaching RMB 149.1 billion (US$21.8 billion), propelling the Chinese vendor to the number two spot behind Ericsson. Net profit more than doubled from RMB 7.8 billion to RMB 18.3 billion, with a net profit margin of 12.2 per cent. However, not including exchange gains or losses tallying RMB 6.9 billion, net profit increased 26.5 per cent.

The company attributed its net profit to rising sales, gains from exchange rates, and strict cost-control margins which had a positive impact on operating margins. According to US-based research firm Gartner, Huawei’s global market share increased from 11.5 per cent in 2008 to 14.2 per cent in 2009.

Contracted sales in North America jumped 53 per cent during the period, while Asian markets excluding China rose 43 per cent. Additionally, the firm is now a partner-of choice for 45 of the world’s top 50 operators, up from 36 operators a year earlier.

Yi Xiang, Huawei’s president for the Middle East said the region experienced 20 per cent growth, boosted by the deployment of the SingleRAN solution, as part of mobile broadband growth and evolution to LTE.

"We see our business momentum continuing in 2010 and expect year-on-year revenue growth of 20 per cent driven by increased deployments of mobile and fixed broadband networks, further take-up of customised smart devices, and higher demand for professional managed services,” Yi Xiang added.