Huawei "Strengthening Cooperation with Korean Companies... Overcoming US Sanctions through R&D"

Cloud Sector and Energy Business, Anticipated Cooperation with Korea
Policy to Actively Foster ICT Talent as Well

Karl Song, President of Global External Cooperation and Communication at Huawei, is participating via video conference in the '2021 Annual Report Briefing' held on the 29th at the Four Seasons Hotel in Gwanghwamun, Seoul.

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Hye-sun] Huawei, which marked its 20th anniversary of entering Korea this year, expressed its intention to strengthen cooperation with companies in Korea.

Kal Song, Huawei’s Global External Cooperation and Communication President, participated via video at the ‘2021 Annual Report Briefing’ held on the 29th at the Four Seasons Hotel in Gwanghwamun, Seoul, stating, "Korea is a telecommunications powerhouse and a leading country in the global 5G market," and added, "We believe there will be various needs in Korea in both business-to-consumer (B2C) sectors such as video and gaming, and business-to-business (B2B) areas." Huawei will especially focus on the Korean 5G-based business-to-business (5G2B) market. Huawei showed confidence in its technology based on its rich experience in building 5G specialized networks. Huawei explained that it has already built 3,000 5G2B networks worldwide with global companies and is prepared with customized scenario-based solutions tailored to various sectors such as manufacturing, finance, education, logistics, ports, healthcare, mining, and power plants for the Korean industry and enterprises.

Huawei also expects cooperation with Korea in its new business areas of cloud and energy sectors. Kal Song said, "Huawei operates its cloud services in more than 170 countries worldwide, and we see potential for cooperation with Korean companies in related fields," adding, "We also believe there is significant room for collaboration with Korean companies in the solar power sector, which is an eco-friendly digital energy business."

Huawei plans to actively engage in nurturing Korea’s information and communication technology (ICT) talent. Son Lu-won, CEO of Huawei Korea, said, "The core foundation for realizing the digital economy is talent," and added, "We will cooperate with Korean universities to cultivate ICT talent and continue to provide opportunities for many students to participate in Huawei headquarters’ training programs." He continued, "Huawei has hundreds of partners in Korea and has created thousands of job opportunities directly and indirectly," and emphasized, "Realizing ‘sustainable joint growth’ with Korean companies is the direction Huawei pursues." Currently, the proportion of Korean employees is about 75%.

Regarding cybersecurity, it was stated, "Huawei has maintained strong cybersecurity in Korea for 20 years." Kal Song also acknowledged, "Huawei is aware that while participating in Korea’s 5G infrastructure construction over the past few years, it has received both significant interest and concerns," and added, "To address these concerns, Huawei has obtained various cybersecurity certifications and built the best networks."

On this day, Huawei also shared last year’s achievements and future outlook. According to Huawei’s annual report, Huawei’s revenue in 2021 was 636.8 billion yuan (approximately 122 trillion KRW), a 28.6% decrease compared to the previous year. The continued US sanctions affected sales of consumer products such as smartphones and PCs. This was the first time in 19 years since 2002 that Huawei’s revenue declined. The consumer products division’s revenue nearly halved. However, the net profit reached $17.8 billion, achieving a net profit margin of 17.9%. Operating cash flow increased by 69.4%, and the asset-liability ratio decreased from 62.3% in 2020 to 57.8% in 2021.

Huawei analyzed that the ability to achieve profit growth despite difficult circumstances was due to continuous investment in research and development (R&D). Last year, Huawei invested 142.7 billion yuan (approximately 27.2756 trillion KRW), equivalent to 22.4% of total revenue, in R&D. This is the largest R&D investment Huawei has made in the past 10 years and the second-largest R&D investment worldwide. Currently, more than 50% of Huawei’s employees are engaged in R&D.

Kal Song said, "Although Huawei will face many challenges and a more difficult external environment in the future, I am confident that we can develop steadily and stably," and added, "Through R&D investment, we will seek solutions to external and internal issues such as US sanctions, the digitalization and low-carbon transition of society as a whole."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.