Category Archives: Financial

Smart-Appliance Maker Viomi Reports Surging First-Quarter Profit and Revenue Growth

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Viomi Technology, a Xiaomi-backed Chinese startup focusing on developing Internet of Things (IoT)-powered home appliances, posted a 173.2% increase in first-quarter net profit as the firm expanded overseas.

Net profit for the quarter that ended on March 31 surged to 49.1 million yuan ($7.5 million), Viomi said in its earnings report released Thursday.

Revenue rose 64% year-on-year to 1.3 billion yuan, about 73% of which came from sales of its IoT-enabled appliances such as sweeper robots and smart kitchen products, according to the financial report. Sales of IoT-enabled appliances jumped 111.5% year-on-year.

The remainder of Viomi’s revenue was generated from sales of its domestic water solutions, consumables and small appliances, the report said.

Viomi said that the robust growth got a boost in part by its drive to expand into overseas markets including Europe, Southeast Asia, South Korea and Australia, where its sweeper robots are popular.

“Our products are designed with an eye on health care, smartification, home security and natural AI voice interactions,” said Viomi CEO Chen Xiaoping. “Looking ahead at the rest of 2021, we will continue to optimize our IoT product portfolio with a focus on AI application.”

As of the end of March, Viomi accumulated 5.6 million household users, about 20.4% of which had at least two Viomi-branded internet connected products, according to the report.

The Nasdaq-listed company said that it expects its second-quarter revenue to be between 1.7 billion yuan and 1.9 billion yuan, representing a year-on-year increase of 2.1% to 9.8%.

Galanz to buy whirlpool China

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Home appliance manufacturer Galanz Group’s acquisition of the Chinese unit of United States’ white goods maker Whirlpool will help it to diversify its business, a top company official said.

“Growth, no matter what happens, along with high-quality development, will be our core strategy this year,” said Liang Zhaoxian, chairman of Galanz, during the company’s annual meeting on Sunday.

After over 200 days of antimonopoly investigation by authorities in the United States, China, Brazil, Germany, Turkey, Austria and Colombia, Galanz was given the go-ahead for the acquisition deal, according to Liang.

“The approval means all shareholders of Whirlpool China can sell their shares to Galanz. It would be a historical milestone for us,” said Liang.

Last August, the Chinese firm said that it would accept no less than 51 percent of Whirlpool China’s equity and a maximum of 61 percent, according to Liang.

“Galanz will focus on upgrading technology, brand and supply chains for business growth this year. The acquisition of Whirlpool China is part of our strategy to help diversify brands and promote sustainable business growth,” said Liang.

The acquisition, which is equal to 2.46 billion yuan ($370 million), will start on Wednesday and end on April 29. Whirlpool China’s stock price was down 6.48 percent at 7.65 yuan per share on Tuesday.

“It was not simply a cooperation between a Chinese company and a Fortune Global 500 company－Chinese home appliance makers will be more competitive in the global market as they have now developed core technologies in the self-innovative industrial chain,” said Liang.

According to Liang, Galanz plans to build two purchasing technology quality control centers in South China and East China in the near future.

“We will build a new market, bring in advanced technology, products and services to consumers in China, as well as the world,” said Liang.

Galanz, which is Whirlpool’s third-largest global supplier, intends to help Whirlpool China to improve management efficiency, enhance profitability and ensure stable development, said Liang Huiqiang, vice-chairman of Galanz.

After acquiring a combined majority stake in Japanese kitchen appliance maker Zojirushi in January last year, Galanz has been vying for more brands to diversify its business.

Teaming up with Whirlpool and Zojirushi will help Galanz to enter a rapid business expansion in the near future, according to Liang.

“Having multiple brands and diversified businesses is the future development trend for various consumer groups,” said Liang.

The Guangdong-based company has been looking for more than 10,000 workers to boost its production capacity this year, due to increased orders from overseas buyers.

After posting a 212 percent year-on-year growth in sales last year, the company is expecting overseas orders to rise by 90 percent on a yearly basis during the first quarter of this year, according to Liang.

“The production capacity of refrigerators will increase by more than 80 percent this year,” said Liang.

Vestel signs licensing agreement with South Korea’s Daewoo Brand!

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Vestel signs licensing agreement with South Korea’s Daewoo Brand!

Bringing to 157 countries worldwide the leading-edge technologies it manufactures in Turkey, and having been Turkey’s exports champion in consumer electronics for 23 years, Vestel has initiated yet another strategic collaboration in exports by signing a 10-year licensing agreement with with POSCO INTERNATIONAL Corporation, holders of the Daewoo brand, to allow Vestel manufacture and sell major appliances and TV sets with the Daewoo brand.

Vestel is set to export these products to nearly 50 countries particularly in Europe as well as Russia and the Turkic Republics, further cementing its strong position in both European and Asian markets.

Arçelik have signed an agreement to acquire Whirlpool Turkey’s manufacturing operations.

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Arçelik have signed an agreement to acquire Whirlpool Turkey’s manufacturing operations.

Manisa is a key production hub which will bring in a significant additional capacity for Arçelik Global and further strengthen their foothold in Europe and in the region.

Arçelik are establishing a strategic commercial relationship with Whirlpool which will open up export opportunities in new markets.

Haier Financial results

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Haier Smart Home has released its Q1 2021 financial results showing operating revenue of €7 billion and an increase of 27% year-on-year. Overseas revenue increased by 24.6% yoy, with revenue growth of over 40% in high-end products. The Q1 2021 report follows the recent publication of the 2020 Annual Report confirming the profitable growth of its overseas business. In 2020 the company registered a global turnover of approximately over €26.5 billion, with smart appliances sales increased by 29% globally. Haier Europe achieved revenues for approximately over €2.1 billion in 2020, with an increase of 8.7% yoy. “2020 was certainly an unprecedented year with many headwinds and we always have had people safety as our top priority. We committed to guaranteeing business continuity and serving our consumers: our financial results show that all of our efforts are paying back – said Yannick Fierling, CEO at Haier Europe -. We have an ambitious long-range plan and growth strategy for Europe for the years ahead and the positive Q1 2021 performance we have already registered clearly shows we are on the right track”.

AO World sales surge and boss predicts more growth, even as rivals reopen shops

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AO released Q4 and Full Year trading update to the city and are delighted to report a 62% increase in revenue founder and Chief Executive, John Roberts, said: “I am delighted to report a year of outstanding financial, operational and strategic progress. The last 12 months have been like no other and we have been very proud to rise to the challenges for our customers – keeping their lives powering on with essential electrical and technology products.”

“We were brave and bold in our capacity and infrastructure investments early in the year and now look forward to building on that scale advantage.

Guangdong Homa Appliances hostile bid by TCL

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Leading Chinese TV maker TCL is seeking to swallow Guangdong Homa Appliances, a big manufacturer of refrigerators, in a hostile takeover bid.

TCL already has a 20% stake in Homa Appliances, whose stock it began snapping up at the beginning of the year. The move, at diversifying TCL’s business portfolio, comes in response to radical changes in the business environment. After years of rapid growth, backed by a vast domestic market, Chinese appliances makers are under strong pressure to branch out into new businesses and markets.

Calling Homa Appliances “an extremely competitive company,” Li Dongsheng, chairman of TCL Electronics, the core unit of the TCL group, suggested in early March that the group would continue amassing Homa shares in the coming months

Philips is to sell its domestic appliances business to Hillhouse Capital

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Philips is to sell its domestic appliances business to Hillhouse Capital with a 15 year licensing deal in the last of its re-structuring deals.

The domestic appliance business had sales of EUR2.2bn in 2020 in kitchen, coffee, garment care and home care devices as part of total sales of EUR19.2bn for Philips. The license agreement has annual payments that represent an estimated net present value of approximately EUR 700m, resulting in a total deal value of approximately EUR4.4bn. The deal is expected to be completed in the third quarter of 2021 subject to customary closing conditions. Philips and Domestic Appliances will enter into an exclusive brand license agreement to use the Philips brand and certain of Philips’ other domestic appliances brands for manufacturing, sales, and marketing globally for a period of 15 years, which is renewable subject to the terms of the brand license agreement. This will see the Domestic Appliances business presented as a discontinued operation in Philips’ financial statements from the first quarter of 2021, minimising the financial impact of losses from the Covid-19 pandemic. “I am pleased that in Hillhouse Capital we have found a new home for the Domestic Appliances business to further expand on its market leadership, strong brand and pipeline of new innovations,” said Frans van Houten, CEO of Royal Philips. The deal, which started in January 2020, continues the focus for Philips as a medical technology company, after its recent acquisition of medical data management companies, although it has kept the personal health business. “This transaction concludes our major divestments,” said van Houten. “Going forward, our focus is on extending our leadership in health technology and continuing our transformation into a solutions company supporting professional healthcare customers achieve the Quadruple Aim and consumers with their personal health.” This includes the EUR 3.2bn Personal Health businesses as part of the integrated health continuum approach through consumer-driven product and solutions innovation in areas such as oral healthcare, personal care, and mother & child care, says van Houten. “We look forward to joining forces with Philips to expand into new markets and capture more growth opportunities globally,” said Lei Zhang, Founder and CEO of Hillhouse Capital. “We are aligned with Philips’ mission to bring high quality products to support healthy and fulfilling lifestyles for consumers across the globe.” The domestic appliance business has 7000 staff and operates in 100 countries. The headquarters will remain in the Netherlands, says Zhang. “I am convinced that together with Hillhouse Capital’s deep e-commerce, supply chain and digital expertise, we will be in a great position to continue bringing meaningful innovations to the consumer’s homes,” said Henk de Jong, CEO of Philips Domestic Appliances. “Based on our market leading product portfolio, broad customer and consumer base and R&D capabilities, we are keen to keep supporting families and individuals to lead healthier and happier lives. We look forward to working with Hillhouse to capture additional growth opportunities.” Hillhouse is backed by US universities including Yale, Stanford and Princeton and has strong links in China with investments in Tencent and JD.com, but has also invested in an organic baby food and snack manufacturer called Little Freddie, a Californian craft beer maker and a pet food brand. https://www.philips.com

Webcast ahead of the Annual General Meeting with Electrolux Chairman

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A webcast ahead of the Annual General Meeting with Electrolux Chairman and CEO is now available on www.electroluxgroup.com.

As previously communicated, the Annual General Meeting on March 25, 2021 will due to the coronavirus pandemic be held without physical presence of shareholders. In addition to the information already published ahead of the Annual General Meeting, Electrolux Chairman of the Board Staffan Bohman and President and CEO Jonas Samuelson share their reflections on 2020 and the strategy forward in a webcast. The webcast is available here http://www.electroluxgroup.com.