(Yicai Global) April 22 -- Revenue at Huawei Technologies, the world's largest telecoms equipment maker, jumped 39 percent in the first quarter from a year earlier.

Revenue stood at CNY180 billion (USD26.8 billion) in the three months through March, the Shenzhen-based company said in an earnings report published today. The pace of increase for the whole of last year was 19.5 percent.

The company has signed 40 contracts with global operators for commercial fifth-generation wireless networks and had shipped over 70,000 5G base stations and 59 million smartphones worldwide as of the end of March, it added.

Founder and Chief Executive Ren Zhengfei said in a letter to staff at the start of this year that the privately held company would win customers as well as the acceptance and trust of governments, Yicai Global reported at the time. Huawei would earn credibility not just with its high-quality products, but also the processes used to create them, he added.

Editor: Ben Armour