Huawei is expecting an operating profit of CNY33.9-34.3 billion ($5.52-5.59 billion) for 2014 – an increase of almost 18 per cent over 2013. Growth in the vendor’s smartphone sales and 3G/4G network deals fuelled the results.

The company said revenue rose by almost 20 per cent to CNY287-289 billion, which is significantly higher than the 15 per cent growth the company’s rotating CEO, Ken Hu, stated in his online new year’s message.

Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou (pictured) said in a statement that the company’s profit margin remained at about 12 per cent – the same level as in 2013.

Huawei will release its audited financial results in March.

Looking at the performance of its specific business units, the consumer business group posted the strongest growth, with revenue up 32 per cent year-on-year due to stronger sales of mid-range and high-end handsets. It said it experienced particularly strong growth in emerging markets.

The Shenzhen-based company announced earlier in the month that smartphone sales increased by nearly one-third last year to reach $11.8 billion as shipments increased 40 per cent to 75 million units. Recent figures from Gartner showed that Huawei was ranked third for smartphone sales in Q3, just ahead of fellow Chinese players Xiaomi and Lenovo.

Its carrier network business increased by about 15 per cent while its enterprise group grew by around 27 per cent.

Meng said that ubiquitous connectivity and big data will drive a new industrial revolution in intelligent technology, “propelling the modernisation of traditional industries, and reshaping today’s industries and business landscape. The focus of industrial innovation will migrate from the consumer internet to the industrial internet.”

Meng forecast that by 2025 the number of connections around the world will exceed 100 billion, “with connectivity becoming ubiquitous, much like air and water.”

She said Huawei is committed to connecting numerous systems, businesses, cities and people around the globe. Last year it invested almost CNY40 billion in R&D, an increase of 28 per cent over 2013.