Chinese device maker TCL’s six month results were impacted by tough conditions at home and away, and its forecast for the rest of the year was hardly cheering.

“The operating environment is expected to remain challenging in the future,” Guo Aiping, CEO, said.

The company, which uses the Alcatel brand in many markets, saw smartphone shipments in the first half fall 12 per cent to 17.4 million. Total shipments (handsets and other products) was down by 2 per cent to 33.1 million units.

The company saw its profit fall 98 per cent to HKD11 million ($1.4 million) from HKD454 million, on revenue of HKD10.9 billion, down 17 per cent from HKD13.2 billion.

In a statement, TCL said that spending power and consumer sentiment was affected by the global economic slowdown and continuing currency fluctuations in emerging markets. Its Chinese counterparts are also looking for growth both at home and overseas, while local players in various market are also picking up traction.

So far this year, the latest flagship Alcatel device (Idol 4) launched worldwide, while the TCL750, the first device following a restructure in China, also reached the market.

The chief executive said: “As hardware development for virtual reality (VR) is currently in its initial stage, we will focus on the industry buzz and continue to invest further on VR technology and device development to capture the VR consumer market.”

The company has already stated support for Google’s Daydream platform.