. | . |
Huawei first-quarter sales drop 16.5% as US sanctions bite by AFP Staff Writers Beijing (AFP) April 28, 2021 Chinese telecoms giant Huawei said Wednesday that first-quarter revenue tumbled after harsh US sanctions ripped into its phone business. Huawei has been at the centre of intense US-China trade and technological rivalry in recent years and the Trump administration accused it of potential espionage on behalf of Beijing without providing hard evidence. As a result, it was placed by Washington on a 2019 blacklist that prevented it from acquiring US-made technology crucial to its operations, in particular chips. Its 5G infrastructure has also been removed or delayed in a succession of Western countries on national security concerns, which drew sharp rebukes from Beijing. Huawei said it generated first-quarter revenue of 152.2 billion yuan ($23.4 billion) -- a fall of 16.5 percent on-year -- and attributed the drop to a decline in consumer revenue as the result of offloading a smart device brand. The firm sold its Honor budget phone line to a domestic consortium late last year. The group's current rotating chairman Eric Xu in a statement that "2021 will be another challenging year for us, but it's also the year that our future development strategy will begin to take shape". "No matter what challenges come our way, we will continue to maintain our business resilience." Chief financial officer Meng Wanzhou -- daughter of CEO and founder Ren Zhengfei -- is currently under house arrest in Canada battling extradition to the US on charges of fraudulently conducting business with Iran in defiance of international sanctions. Ren, controversial for his past links to the People's Liberation Army, in February called on new US President Joe Biden's administration to implement a "policy of openness" after the setbacks of the Donald Trump era. So far, not much has changed on that front. Germany last week approved a new cyber security law that allows its government to block "untrustworthy" suppliers of 5G technology, bringing it in line with other EU countries such as France, which quietly limited orders of Huawei equipment last year. The UK, New Zealand and Australia have formally blocked Huawei from their 5G networks following US pressure. Pressure from Washington weighed on Huawei's results last year. Unlike in 2019, the group has not yet disclosed in detail the number of phones it sold in 2020.
Apple boosts US investment pledge to $430 bn San Francisco (AFP) April 26, 2021 Apple announced Monday it plans to boost its investment plans in the United States to $430 billion over the next five years, saying this would add some 20,000 jobs. The updated plan includes more than $1 billion for a new campus and engineering hub in the Research Triangle area of North Carolina. Apple also plans to invest "tens of billions of dollars for next-generation silicon development and 5G innovation across nine US states," a statement said. The California tech giant said it was incr ... read more
|
|
The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us. |