China's Huawei reports nearly $100 billion in sales and claims it has overcome the 'siege' of US sanctions

Huawei’s flagship store in Shanghai, China. Future Publishing / Getty

• Huawei has defied sales expectations this year 
• The Shenzhen-based tech giant said it expects to bring in more than $98.5 billion in revenue in 2023.
• The release of Huawei’s 5G smartphone in August cause concern in Washington

Chinese tech giant Huawei has said it expects to deliver more than $98.5 billion (700 billion yuan) in sales revenue this year, according to a new year message issued by the company.

The numbers mark a 9% jump in sales, signaling that US sanctions and competition from Apple in China have not held Huawei back for long.

Though sales were still 20% off Huawei’s 2020 peak of $136.7 billion (891 billion yuan), rotating chairman Ken Hu was optimistic that the company had turned a corner.

“After years of hard work, we’ve managed to weather the storm. And now we’re pretty much back on track,” Hu wrote. “Shared conviction has helped us break the siege and forge ahead together.”

Huawei has found itself in the middle of deteriorating tensions between China and the US, and Washington has accused it of having close ties to the Chinese military and government.

In 2019, the Trump administration introduced sanctions barring the telecommunications company from accessing advanced Western chipmaking equipment unless they received official approval.

At the time, about a third of Huawei’s suppliers were American and it relied on the US for high-powered computer chips.

But this year, Huawei has proved capable of developing its own cutting-edge chip technology with the release of the Mate 60 Pro smartphone.

Launched the same week that the US commerce secretary was visiting China and weeks before the iPhone 15, the Mate 60 sold nearly 1.5 million units in the first month, double the number reached by the company’s previous model.

The smartphone was celebrated in China as a viable, homegrown alternative to the iPhone.

The company has also had a boost from the Chinese government’s attempts to wean the country off Western technology, which have brought Apple’s sales down by as much as 6%, Bloomberg reported.

Despite their successful year, the company acknowledged that “serious challenges” lay ahead.

“Geopolitical and economic uncertainties abound, while technology restrictions and trade barriers continue to have an impact on the world,” Hu wrote in the message.

Looking forward, Huawei said they plan to expand investment in emerging technologies like AI and strengthen business operations.