Huawei issues UK sales warning as restrictions hit hard
The UK arm of Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei has issued a warning over its future sales as restrictions on its activities continue to have a major impact.
The Reading-headquartered business has said its turnover in 2025 will continue on the downward trajectory it has been on since 2019 but that the company will remain profitable.
The division of the wider Huawei group had commanded a turnover of £1.26bn in 2019 but that figure has been slashed every year since.
New accounts filed with Companies House have revealed its turnover for 2024 totalled £188.2m, down from the £229.6m it reported in 2023.
Huawei’s turnover totalled £359m in 2022, £481m in 2021, £931.2m in 2020.
The new results also show the firm’s pre-tax profit declined in the year from £11.4m to £8.8m.
In 2022 its pre-tax profit stood at £17.5m while it reported totals of £16.7m in 2021, £36.4m in 2020 and £38m in 2019.
In October 2022, the UK government announced that Huawei technology must be removed from the UK’s 5G public networks by the end of 2027.
While also impacting the firm’s turnover and profit, the restrictions have meant Huawei’s headcount in the UK has fallen from almost 900 in 2019 to 176 in 2024.
The UK arm of Huawei issued a dividend to its Chinese parent company of £8.6m in 2024, down from the £25.8m it paid in 2024.
It is also proposing a dividend of approximately £6.6m for 2024.
Huawei ‘confident’ it will remain profitable
A statement signed off by the board said: “Moving forward, the company will focus on the sale of products and services that are not impacted by the UK or US restrictions.
“Although the business scale is expected to decline as a result of this external environment, the directors believe the company is well positioned to continue its sales and profitability in 2025.”
Huawei added: “The company has set its financial targets for 2025 and 2026 Q1 in anticipation of both the risks and opportunities typical in the telecommunications sector and the challenging economic conditions.
“Restrictions placed on the business by US and UK legislation and regulations have also been factored into its business plan and are included in its forecasts.
“Sales are expected to continue in the company’s consumer business, other hardware supplies and support activities.
“Yet we expect that revenue in 2025 will fall further from the 2024 level.
“However, the company is confident that it will continue to execute its business plan, underpinned by the underlying technical, operating and financial strength of the company and the group, and it will remain profitable.”