ZTE posts 94% jump in net profit in 2014
ZTE Corp, China’s biggest listed telecommunications equipment maker, yesterday posted a 94 percent jump in net profit in 2014 due to surging demand for 4G network equipment and high profit margins from growing sales of smartphones overseas.
Its net profit totaled 2.63 billion yuan (US$423 million) last year. Revenue reached 81.2 billion yuan, up 7.99 percent, ZTE said in a statement to the Shenzhen Stock Exchange yesterday.
The rapid development of 4G services in 2014 fueled the demand for 4G base stations.
By November, China boasted 75 million 4G users. China Mobile, China Unicom and China Telecom have built a total of 700,000 base stations, surpassing an original target of 500,000 stations.
On the other hand, ZTE expanded business in overseas smartphone markets which offer higher profit margins compared with the domestic market.
ZTE aims to double sales to 20 million units in the US market this year.
The company also plans to surpass LG to become the No. 3 US smartphone vendor within two or three years, according to Cheng Lixin, chief executive of ZTE North America.