Handset maker Xiaomi’s reported a 9.7 per cent decline in third-quarter revenue in the wake of the Covid-19 restrictions in China and falling consumer demand. The smartphone player’s sales in the September-ending quarter reached 70.17 billion yuan or $9.81 billion, slightly missing analyst expectations of 70.52 billion yuan.

Sales of handsets at the company declined 11 per cent, leading declines across business divisions encompassing internet services and smart electronics. Consumer consumption in the company’s home turf China has remained weak as cities across the country continue to implement strict lockdowns to prevent the spread of the Omicron variant.

However, Xiaomi said that since the first three quarters of 2022, it has remained focused on executing its smartphone premiumisation strategy and its premium products have gained widespread recognition.

“Despite ongoing global macroeconomic headwinds, Xiaomi has maintained its business resilience underpinned by its continued execution of corporate strategies, the strengthening of the core “Smartphone x AIoT” strategy, steady development of business operations and the optimisation of its monetisation capabilities,” the handset maker said in a statement.

Meanwhile, to recall, earlier in April, funds worth over Rs 5,551 crore of Xiaomi India were “seized” for violating the Indian foreign exchange law, according to the ED. “Xiaomi India is a wholly owned subsidiary of China-based Xiaomi group. This amount of Rs 5,551.27 crore lying in the bank accounts of the company has been seized by the Enforcement Directorate,” the agency was quoted as saying by news agency PTI.

The seizure of funds has been done under relevant sections of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) after a probe was launched by the federal agency against the company in connection with alleged “illegal remittances” sent abroad by the Chinese firm in February. Xiaomi started its operations in India in 2014 and started remitting the money from the next year, it said.