Kelly Choos 
Computer maker Lenovo increased its sales in India year-on-year in 2020-2021, while smartphone makers Xiaomi and Vivo reported a marginal decline in sales, according to the latest regulatory information. they made to the Registrar of Companies (RoC), accessible via the Tofler business intelligence platform.
In fact, Lenovo has expanded its business despite not having received permission from the Department for the Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) to participate directly in government tenders, such as he indicated this in his documents filed with the RoC.
While Xiaomi and Vivo did not cite the reason for the drop in sales in their RoC filings, industry executives attributed it to the first stricter Covid-19 lockdown in 2020 and the shortage of components having impact on product supply.
Market Researcher IDC India, Research Director, Navkendar Singh says clashes and sentiment between India and China in 2020 had no impact on sales of Chinese smartphone and laptop brands .
“If some companies have lost sales, it’s because of supply and containment issues,” he said.
Emails sent to Xiaomi, Vivo and Lenovo went unanswered until Wednesday’s press time.
According to RoC filings, Xiaomi Technology India – the country’s largest smartphone maker – recorded a 6% drop in revenue from its operations to Rs 35,504 crore for the fiscal year ended March 2021, while Vivo Mobile India saw a 1% drop in revenue to ₹24,724 crore. Oppo Mobiles, another top Chinese smartphone player, has yet to file its FY21 financial statements.
Xiaomi in the filings said, “Every effort will continue to be made to increase revenue and retained earnings in the coming years.”
Vivo also said in the documents that it will “maximize capacity utilization at the lowest cost to achieve higher revenue and improve profitability.”
Lenovo India’s total revenue increased by 14% in FY21 to ₹10,389 crore.
The company, however, said it could not participate directly in public tenders because it had not yet received approval from the DPIIT.
India revised public procurement standards in July 2020, shortly after a deadly clash between Indian and Chinese forces in the Galwan Valley that saw bidders from China and other countries sharing a land border with India India need additional permission in the form of pre-registration with DPIIT. to participate in government tenders.
Lenovo, in its RoC filings, said it submitted an application for registration in September 2020 and satisfactorily responded to all questions received as part of the application review process by relevant government departments. He said he is “awaiting clearance in due course”.
The company further said it increased its manufacturing capacity in India by 100% in FY21 with a new line producing its entire product line in the country.
Vivo became profitable in FY21 with a net profit of ₹552 crore compared to a net loss of ₹348 crore in FY20. However, Xiaomi’s net profit declined by 31% to ₹275 crore in FY21 while Lenovo India net profit fell by 17% to Rs 59 crore.
Relations between India and China had been strained in 2020 due to border clashes and tougher rules for Chinese companies, including the Centre’s banning of several mobile apps, even as social media was down. flooded with anti-Chinese rhetoric.
According to market researcher IDC India, there are four Chinese players among the top five smartphone brands in India – Xiaomi, Vivo, Realme and Oppo – with Korean company Samsung being the other.
