Huawei Technologies reported a meagre 3.7% rise in quarterly revenue on Friday, ending the double-digit growth run it enjoyed earlier this year.

January-September revenue reached 671.3-billion yuan (US$100.4-billion), Huawei said in a statement, without providing a segment breakdown. That represented a 9.9% increase compared to the same period last year.

For the third quarter alone, revenue reached 217.3=-billion yuan, versus 209.5 billion yuan a year earlier, calculations showed. Net profit margin for the nine months was 8%, versus 8.7% over the same period a year earlier, Huawei said.

The slowdown comes as US export restrictions and the global Covid-19 pandemic weakened sales growth in products such as smartphones and telecommunications equipment.

Consumer Business Group CEO Richard Yu earlier this year said Huawei would soon stop making high-end Kirin chips as US restrictions on supplying the firm take effect. Analysts expect its stockpile of the chips to run out next year.

Domestically, consumers have rushed to buy Huawei smartphones on concerns over the availability of newer models. Overseas, however, Huawei has faced sluggish sales, due in part to US restrictions blocking its access to Google Mobile Services.

Honor

Last week, it emerged that Huawei is in talks with Digital China Group and others to sell parts of its Honor budget brand smartphone business in a deal that could fetch up to 25-billion yuan.

Huawei also faces pressure abroad in its telecommunications infrastructure business. This week, Sweden said it would restrict Huawei and Chinese rival ZTE from servicing its upcoming 5G networks. — Reporting by David Kirton, Josh Horwitz and Brenda Goh, (c) 2020 Reuters