HONG KONG – Lenovo Group, the world’s largest PC maker, announced on Thursday that its first-quarter revenue climbed 22% year-on-year, handily beating analyst estimates on the back of soaring demand for artificial intelligence infrastructure. CEO Yang Yuanqing also welcomed the recent tariff pause between the U.S. and China, calling it a positive development that brings much-needed stability.
“The truce is a positive situation,” Yang said in an interview with Reuters following the company’s earnings release. “We feel better than the previous quarter – it brings us more certainty rather than uncertainty.”
The comments came after Washington and Beijing agreed to extend a tariff truce for another 90 days, providing temporary relief for global businesses like Lenovo by averting the threat of triple-digit duties.
For the three months ending June 30, Lenovo reported overall revenue of $18.8 billion, significantly exceeding the $17.4 billion consensus forecast from analysts, according to LSEG data. The company’s net profit attributable to shareholders more than doubled to $505 million, crushing the average estimate of $307.7 million.
Yang attributed the robust performance to the booming AI sector, noting that all three of the company’s major business segments achieved double-digit growth. Lenovo’s AI server business grew by an impressive 150% in the quarter, driven by strong domestic demand in China. Furthermore, AI-enabled PCs accounted for more than 30% of the company’s total PC shipments.
“We see a strong pipeline in AI servers,” Yang added.
Despite the tariff truce, a 30% levy on Chinese exports to the U.S., including PCs, remains in place. However, Yang stated that the U.S. accounts for less than 20% of Lenovo’s total revenue, and the company’s global manufacturing footprint has so far mitigated any significant impact from the tariffs.
Amid the ongoing U.S.-China tech dispute over semiconductors, Yang emphasized that Lenovo has been actively diversifying its supply chain. “Not only can we sell global products, we have invested a lot to develop the best local component products to meet customers’ different requirements,” he said.
Despite the strong earnings report, Lenovo’s shares fell more than 3% in early trading on Thursday, in contrast to a 0.4% rise in Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index. However, looking at the bigger picture, the stock has climbed 15% over the past three months, outperforming the benchmark index.
