Huawei released its audited financial results for 2017, reporting solid business growth. The company's total annual revenue was CNY603.6 billion (US$92.5 billion based on year-end exchange rates), an increase of 15.7 percent over 2016. Net profits were CNY47.5 billion (US$7.3 billion), an increase of 28.1 percent year-on-year.
In 2017, Huawei's annual investment in research and development reached CNY89.7 billion (US$13.8 billion), up 17.4 percent compared with 2016. The company's total research and development (R&D) spend over the past decade has exceeded CNY394 billion (US$60.4 billion).
"We're on a new journey," said Ken Hu, Huawei's Rotating Chairman. "Opportunities and challenges are popping up faster than ever before, and nonstop open innovation is the only way we can keep ahead of the game. Over the next 10 years, Huawei will continue to increase investment in technological innovation, investing more than 10 billion dollars back into R&D every year. We will actively pursue open collaboration, attract and cultivate top talent, and step up efforts in exploratory research. We want to better enable all industries to go digital and intelligent."
Hu added, "As we look to 2018, emerging technologies like the Internet of Things, cloud computing, artificial intelligence, and 5G will soon see large-scale application. Throughout this process, Huawei will stay at the forefront of technological innovation and business transformation. More importantly, we will pay special attention to the practical challenges that our customers face as they go digital. Our job is to help them overcome these challenges and achieve business success. Ultimately, we aim to bring digital to every person, home and organization for a fully connected, intelligent world."
In 2017, Huawei's Carrier business group generated CNY297.8 billion (US$45.7 billion) in revenue, an increase of 2.5 percent year-on-year, focusing on helping global carriers maximize the potential of their existing network assets and seize new opportunities in video, IoT, and cloud markets.
Huawei's Enterprise business group enhanced innovations in cloud, big data, campus networks, data centers, IoT, and other domains, and drove extensive application of its products and solutions for a range of vertical industries. In 2017, Huawei's enterprise business generated CNY54.9 billion (US$8.4 billion) in annual revenue, an increase of 35.1 percent compared with 2016.
In Huawei's consumer business, the Huawei and Honor brands led to rapid growth in their respective markets. Huawei shipped a total of 153 million smartphones (including Honor) in 2017, and reported CNY237.2 billion (US$36.4 billion) in annual revenue, up 31.9 percent year-on-year.
Huawei set up a Cloud Business Unit in 2017, which launched 99 cloud services across 14 major categories, and over 50 solutions. The company also unveiled the Enterprise Intelligence (EI) platform, and developed over 2,000 cloud service partners.