Huawei Phone Chief Counters Political Forces With Record Sales

Huawei’s consumer chief dismissed U.S. “political forces“ and attempts to crimp the company’s growth, saying sales of smartphones and other devices surged by about 50 percent to a record $52 billion in 2018, according to Bloomberg.

Consumer division president Richard Yu called reports of Huawei spying for China “fake news“ and said its product launch schedule for 2019 remains on track. The outspoken executive, speaking to reporters after helping unveil two in-house developed chipsets for fifth-generation wireless gear, waved off concerns the equipment could be employed in espionage.

“The concerns all came from the political guys making noise,“ he said, brushing away a public relations executive who tried to end the briefing. “That’s some influence, but definitely we are confident about our future,“ he said in English.

Huawei is angling for the lead in 5G, the technology that powers everything from self-driving cars to smart cities. It has unveiled a self-developed chip for 5G base stations as well as a modem chip for devices. The company said it’s now shipped over 25,000 of its 5G base stations worldwide. Ryan Ding, chief executive of the carrier business, said 18 out of Huawei’s 30 contracts so far have come from Europe.

It intends to show off its first 5G-capable smartphone with a folding screen during the Mobile World Congress next month, though Yu stressed that, at more than 1,000 euros, it won’t be for the masses. “Our products don’t have any ideology,“ he said.