Eric Xu, Huawei's rotating chairman, spun out a New Year's message to employees that the company's revenue has topped 850 billion Chinese yuan ($122 billion) this year, a new record high for the Chinese group and an 18 percent increase over the previous year.

Xu said Huawei, the second-largest smartphone maker globally, sold 240 million handsets this year, up from 206 million last year. However, he pointed out that this was not as good as predicted.

"These figures are lower than our initial projections, yet business remains solid and we stand strong in the face of adversity", he wrote.

He acknowledged that Huawei is confronting a "strategic and long-term" campaign against its business by the US government. If the campaign persists for long, it would create even more "difficult" environment for the 32-year-old firm to "survive and thrive", he said.

For those who came in late, the US government has been leaning on its allies to ban Huawei gear as a "threat to security" however has been unable to prove its allegations and requires allies to accept them on faith.