HTC Posts Unexpected Q3 Profit

Taiwanese smartphone maker HTC said Friday it swung to a profit in the third quarter, but revenue continued to decline owing to sluggish sales amid strong competition from low-priced Chinese models.

HTC reported a net profit of TWD 640 million ($21 million) in July-September from a net loss of TWD 2.97 billion in the same period last year.

Revenue in this period came in at TWD 41.86 billion, down 11 percent on-year and 36 percent on-quarter. It was also lower than a forecast of between TWD 42 billion and TWD 47 billion, a company statement said.

HTC has said that sales were expected to slow as initial excitement over its new products wore off.

The company's second quarter net profit was up 80 percent on-year and much improved from a net loss of TWD 1.88 billion in the first quarter, aided by good slaes of HTC One M8 and Desire 816 models.

However, analysts warned HTC had a long way to go before regaining lost ground to rivals Samsung and Apple as well as low-cost Chinese rivals such as Lenovo and Huawei.

In the 2013 third quarter, HTC swung to its first net loss of since listing in 2002, as it fell out of the world's top 10 vendors and has been struggling to increase its foothold in the highly competitive smartphone market.