Huawei 2016 sales up 32 percent, profit little-changed

BEIJING – Chinese telecoms equipment maker Huawei says its 2016 sales rose 32 percent from a year earlier but profit increased by only 0.4 percent due to higher spending on research and marketing.

Huawei Technology Ltd. said Friday it earned 37 billion yuan ($5.4 billion) on total revenue that rose 32 percent to 521.6 billion yuan ($75.6 billion).

Sales by Huawei's consumer group, which includes its smartphone brand, rose 44 percent to 179.8 billion yuan ($26 billion) and its enterprise and network businesses also had strong increases. That was offset by a 28 percent increase in spending on research and development and a 38.8 percent rise in marketing costs.