Huawei's 2014 revenue rose to $46 billion thanks to cloud computing, smart devices

Chinese telecoms equipment maker Huawei expects advances in cloud computing and higher demand for smart devices to have lifted 2014 sales revenue by 15 percent to $46 billion, CEO Ken Hu said in a new year's message on the company's website.The Shenzhen-based company, for which three executives share CEO duties in six-month rotation, had said last year that it will achieve sustainable growth in 2014. It had also targeted revenue of $70 billion by 2018, or annual growth of about 10 percent a year.Huawei's smartphone shipments rose by more than 40 percent last year, according to an internal memo seen by Reuters, failing to match its own target and the performance of faster-growing rivals such as Xiaomi.Earlier reports suggest that Huawei's smartphone sales shot up after adopting Xiaomi’s online strategy. Given the early signs, Huawei executives hope to emulate the phenomenal growth of Xiaomi, which broke into the global top five in just a few years – a success not likely to go unnoticed by the growing ranks of low-cost Chinese smartphone makers.Honor brand president Jeff Liu said industry transition to an online sales strategy was inevitable given the competitive pricing, afforded by reduced distribution expenses that would otherwise make up 30 percent of handset costs.With inputs from Reuters