Huawei is hurting. Since the United States placed export restrictions on the company last year, the Chinese telecommunications giant has been cut off from key components of the semiconductor supply chain. U.S. diplomats have also persuaded a growing number of foreign leaders, many of them in advanced democracies, to keep Huawei out of their 5G networks. These punitive measures are taking a toll, and the company’s revenue has declined for four straight quarters.
But Huawei is also adapting. The world’s largest supplier of telecommunications gear is already pivoting from network equipment and phones to cloud computing, e-government services, and other products that are less dependent on advanced semiconductors. Meanwhile, Huawei is continuing to market its technology aggressively in the developing world, where it has been widely embraced. By deepening its presence in large emerging markets such as Brazil, Indonesia, and Nigeria, Huawei is positioning itself to rise again.
