Embattled Chinese manufacturer, Huawei, has forecast a better-than-expected slump in its smartphone business amid US trade bans – potentially a third lower than initially estimated at US$10 billion.

H1 revenues lift 23% year-on-year, shipping 118 million smartphones despite strained US tensions and trade bans.

According to Reuters, Huawei’s $100 billion smartphone business has been significantly hit after being blacklisted and placed on the US’ ‘Entity List’ trade restrictions.

Back in June, Founder and CEO, Ren Zhengfei, claimed the blacklisting would slash US$30 billion from full-year revenue.

In a press briefing unveiling its new AI chip, Zhengfei announced the sales hit would in fact be “a little less than” feared, but a reduction of over US$10 billion is likely.

The news comes as Huawei continues to accelerate its homegrown software and hardware efforts, reducing reliance on Qualcomm and Google.

Despite receiving a 90-day reprieve for select US bans, Huawei Deputy Chairman, Eric Xu, asserts the company is “fully prepared” to live with it.

Huawei’s smartphone business has continued to notch bumper growth, which commentators claim has helped buffered slumps in other international regions.