(Yicai Global) Aug. 28 -- ZTE, China's second-biggest telecoms equipment maker behind Huawei, made a net profit of CNY1.5 billion (USD209 million) in the first half after losing some CNY7.8 billion in the year-ago period due to the United States' trade embargo.

Revenue was up 13.1 percent at CNY44.6 billion (USD6.2 billion), the Shenzhen-based firm said in a statement yesterday. The leap was thanks to gains in its carrier network and government businesses, which collected CNY32.5 billion, up 38.2 percent, and CNY4.7 billion. Revenue from the consumer sector totaled CNY7.4 billion.

The loss in the first half of last year was largely a result of the US ban and the subsequent USD1 billion fine -- which it picked up for breaching US trade rules by selling American technology to Iran -- it added. Its net profit from January through June a year before that was USD2.3 billion.

ZTE anticipates boosting profit to between CNY3.8 billion and CNY4.6 billion in the first three quarters of this year, closing in on its 2017 full-year profit of CNY4.6 billion.

Its overseas revenue in the first half made up 38.5 percent of the total, with the company now having penned 25 fifth-generation mobile network contracts covering major markets not just in China but in Europe, the Asia-Pacific region and the Middle East. It has partnered 60 operators around the globe.

The firm also plans to release its third-gen seven nanometer chip in the second half, which it developed entirely on its own.

Editor: James Boynton