Chinese equipment vendor ZTE has reported strong double-digit growth in both revenue and profit for the first half of the year on the back of strong demand for 3G equipment in its domestic market. The vendor said that revenue rose 40.4 percent to CNY27.7 billion (US$4.1 billion) in the first half year of 2009 compared to the same period last year, while net profit grew 40.5 percent to CNY780 million. The growth was almost entirely due to activity in China where all three of the country’s mobile operators are currently in the process of rolling out their first 3G networks. ZTE reported operating revenue of CNY14.95 billion in China, representing a year-on-year growth of 111.7 percent. However revenue from its international operations grew just 0.7 percent to CNY12.76 billion, accounting for 46 percent of total operating revenue.

Despite only a very slight growth in its international businesses, ZTE said it was now collaborating with operators in populous countries such as Vietnam and Turkey, while also successfully forging partnerships with tier-one operators in Europe and the Americas including Verizon Wireless, TeliaSonera, Telstra and Telenor. Among its specific product lines, ZTE registered year-on-year revenue growth of 46.2 percent at its carrier network business, 29.8 percent for handset products and 29.2 percent for telecoms software systems, services and other products. Commenting on future strategy, ZTE chairman Hou Weigui, said ZTE would “seek to maintain its competitive edge in the international market and focus on large, populous countries as potential emerging markets [and] strengthen cooperation with key strategic carriers in high-end markets such as Western Europe and North America.”