Huawei Technologies, China’s leading telecommunication equipment maker, expected its sales to grow by 31 percent this year, led by a doubling in exports as it pushes to develop international markets, the company said.

Its revenue this year could reach US$5 billion, a year-on-year increase of nearly US$1.2 billion, the Shenzhen-based company said in a statement released late Wednesday.

As for the total sales, Huawei expects exports to rise to about US$2 billion from US$1.05 billion in 2003. Through July, the company had already posted international sales this year of more than US$1.1 billion.

Huawei and its archrival, Zhongxing Telecom Co. Ltd. (ZTE), both based in Shenzhen, have embarked on a push in recent years to export their products as they search for additional growth.

(Shenzhen Daily September 10, 2004)