Foxconn looks to 4G, e-commerce for new revenue

Hon Hai Precision Industry, also known as Foxconn, is targeting to double its annual revenue over the next 10 years as it looks to extend its focus to e-commerce, 4G, and cloud. 

The Taiwanese manufacturer's plan to drive revenue to NT$10 trillion (US$329.68 billion) is part of efforts to broaden the company's portfolio beyond low-margin production, reports Wall Street Journal. Foxconn Chairman Terry Gou said Sunday at the company's annual gathering in Taipei: "E-commerce, 4G mobile services, cloud computing, and other high-tech innovations will drive our growth in next 10 years." 

In its fiscal 2013, it clocked revenues of NT$3.95 trillion (US$129.56 billion), a 1.3 percent increase over the previous year. Apple accounts for some 40 percent of the contract manufacturer's revenue, which is commonly recognized for assembling iPads and iPhones, but the Taiwanese company has been looking to expand its business and clientele following moves by Apple and other customers to widen their supply base with competitors such as Pegatron.

In recent years, Foxconn has moved into producing and selling its own range of products including smart TVs, tablets, and low-cost smartphones. 

At the company's annual party, Guo also revealed potential plans to invest in Indonesia this year as well as expand its manufacturing business into the United States. "The U.S. is a must-go market," he said in a Reuters report, noting that its business partners and customers were keen for Foxconn to establish manufacturing capabilities in the U.S. market. 

He added in a Wall Street Journal report: "Automation, software and technology innovation will be our key focus in the U.S. in the coming few years." Guo also noted that the company was assessing plans to build a panel manufacturing plant in the country that will focus on screens larger than 60 inches. 

The company in November said it was investing US$40 million in Pennsylvania to build a "high-end supply chain", which would include plans to hire 500 employees in the U.S. state as well as to develop robotic technology with Carnegie Mellon University. 

Its investment in Indonesia has been reported to be up to US$10 billion over five years, though Foxconn has not confirmed the details. Guo, however, did say this market could potentially replace China as the world's manufacturing hub in future. Indonesia is a stronghold for Canadian smartphone maker, BlackBerry, which has some 6.3 million subscribers in the Southeast Asian market. 

The world's biggest contract manufacturer, Foxconn currently has a workforce of over 1 million, though its factories in China have been fraught with reports of riots, strikes, and suicides. Just last week, a dozen of its senior managers were arrested on suspicion of soliciting several million US dollars in bribes from iPhone parts suppliers.