HONG KONG: China’s Huawei Technologies Co Ltd expects sales to drop to around $100 billion this year and the next, CEO Ren Zhengfei said on Monday, as its business comes under pressure due to US sanctions.

The company had reported revenue of 721.2 billion yuan ($104.16 billion) last year, up 19.5 per cent from 2017.

Ren said he expects a revival in the business in 2021.

He was speaking at an event at the company’s Shenzhen headquarters with two US tech experts George Gilder and Nicholas Negroponte.

Ren added Huawei will not cut research and development spending despite the expected hit to the company’s finances.

The United States has put Huawei on a blacklist that bans American companies from doing business with the Chinese firm.