Lenovo chief expects quick resolution to Sino-US trade war, sees only minor impact on its global operations
- US$14 billion revenue gain during the latest quarter was also Lenovo’s highest quarterly revenue for four years
The head of China’s Lenovo Group is optimistic there will be a fast resolution to the ongoing trade war between the world’s largest two economies, though Yang Yuanqing says his company is not suffering much thanks to its large global presence.
“We have heard a lot of positive messages or signals about achieving an agreement [between the US and China on trade] so definitely I think there will be good news not just for Lenovo but for most multinational companies,” the chairman and chief executive of Lenovo said on a quarterly earnings webcast on Thursday, when the world’s largest personal computer (PC) maker by shipments reported better-than-expected profit gains for the three-months ended December.
Quarterly profits reached US$233 million after the Chinese company saw strong growth across its major business segments, compared with a US$289 million loss in the same period a year earlier when the company recorded a one-time write-off of US$400 million in deferred income tax assets due to tax reform passed in the US at the end of 2017.
The US$14 billion revenue gain during the latest quarter was also Lenovo’s highest quarterly revenue for four years, up 8.5 per cent year on year, after PC and smart devices’ business revenue was up 11.6 per cent to a record high of US$10.7 billion, while its mobile segment became profitable worldwide for the first time since the Motorola Mobility acquisition in 2014.
The US and China have started to outline commitments in principle on the stickiest issues in their trade dispute, marking the most significant progress yet toward ending the seven-month trade war, Reuters reported on Thursday, citing people familiar with the negotiations.
Although the two countries remain far apart on demands made by the Trump administration for structural changes to China’s economy, Reuters said the broad outline of what could make up a deal is beginning to emerge as the two sides push for an agreement by March 1, when US imposed tariffs are scheduled to rise to 25 per cent from 10 per cent on US$200 billion in Chinese goods.
