Xiaomi Corporation (“Xiaomi” or the “Group”; stock code:1810), a consumer electronics and smart manufacturing company with smartphones and smart hardware connected by an Internet of Things (IoT) platform at its core, has released its audited consolidated financial results for the year ended 31 December 2021.
Despite challenges around global economies, Xiaomi’s resilient business model achieved healthy annual growth. In 2021, total revenue for the year reached RMB328.3 billion, an increase of 33.5% year-over-year while adjusted net profit for the year came in at RMB22.0 billion, representing an increase of 69.5% year-over-year with both annual metrics beating consensus.
Robust growth in overseas business with a record-high market share of global smartphone shipments
Xiaomi’s products are still attracting global attention in 2021. Xiaomi’s global smartphone shipments increased by 30.0 % year-over-year to a new high of 190.3 million units. According to Canalys, our smartphone shipments ranked 3rd in 2021, with a record-high market share of 14.1%.
Xiaomi’s overseas business grew rapidly last year as Xiaomi pursued its international strategy. Revenue from overseas markets reached RMB163.6 billion in 2021, increasing 33.7 % from the previous year and accounting for 49.8% of total revenue. Apart from smartphones, the internet and IoT businesses in other regions are growing. In 2021, overseas internet revenue reached RMB5.0 billion, increasing 84.3 % year-on-year and accounting for 17.8% of total revenue.
Xiaomi continued to improve its competitive advantages in local markets, with smartphone shipments increasing in Europe, the Middle East, Latin America, Africa, and the Asia Pacific, building on its strengthened presence in overseas markets. Xiaomi’s market share of smartphone shipments was ranked No. 1 in 14 countries and regions, according to Canalys, and it’s among the top five in 62 countries and regions globally. Xiaomi’s smartphone shipments in Europe ranked No. 2 in 2021, with a market share of 22.5%.
Emerging markets maintained strong growth momentum. In Latin America and Africa, Xiaomi’s smartphone shipments in 2021 grew 94.0% and 65.8% year-on-year, respectively, and were the No. 3 smartphone vendor in both regions.
Xiaomi continued to strengthen the carrier channel overseas. According to Canalys, Xiaomi shipped more than 25 million smartphones through carrier channels in overseas markets (excluding India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, and Bangladesh) in 2021, an increase of more than 120 % year-over-year. According to Canalys, Xiaomi’s smartphone market share through carrier channels placed top 3 in 34 overseas markets, with carrier channel market share in Europe increasing from 7.9% in 2020 to 16.8% in 2021.
Competitiveness in premium smartphone segment improved while dual-brand strategy continued to drive growth momentum
Through the company’s unwavering commitment to premiumization, Xiaomi’s dual-brand strategy continued to make progress. Building on the company’s precise product and marketing strategies, Xiaomi’s user base continued to diversify.
Xiaomi’s global shipments of smartphones with retail prices of RMB3,000 each in mainland China and EUR300 each in overseas markets exceeded 24 million units in 2021, far beyond the approximately 10 million units we shipped in 2020. Premium smartphone shipments as a percentage of total shipments increased from approximately 7% in 2020 to approximately 13% in 2021.
Xiaomi’s overseas shipments of smartphones with retail prices of EUR300 or more increased by more than 160% year-over-year in 2021. Xiaomi ranked No. 3 in terms of overseas shipments of premium smartphones with retail prices of USD350 each in 2021, according to Canalys, indicating that Xiaomi’s commitment to premiumization overseas is bearing fruit.
Xiaomi 12 series has instantly become one of the most popular premium smartphones after launch leveraging on its hardware and innovative technologies. Its omni-channel sales exceeded RMB1.8 billion in just 5 minutes after launch.
In the meantime, Redmi continued to bring cutting-edge technologies to the mass market and offer the ultimate user experience across highly accessible products. The Redmi K50G and the Redmi K50G Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team Edition sold over RMB280 million in the first minute of the sale in February 2022. Simultaneously, Xiaomi solidified its offline channel in mainland China, which has played a greater role in premium smartphone shipment growth.
Strengthened synergies of AIoT business and advantages of smart ecosystem
Xiaomi remains focused on executing the “Smartphone × AIoT” strategy globally. As of December 31, 2021, the number of connected devices (excluding smartphones, tablets, and laptops) on our AIoT platform reached 434 million, an increase of 33.6% year-over-year; the number of users with five or more devices connected to our AIoT platform (excluding smartphones, tablets, and laptops) reached 8.8 million, representing a year-over-year increase of 40.4%. In December 2021, the MAU of our AI Assistant (“小愛同學”) reached 107.0 million, up 23.3% year-over-year, and the MAU of our Mi Home App grew to 63.9 million, representing a year-over-year increase of 42.0%.
Xiaomi’s global shipments of our smart TV reached 12.3 million units in 2021, against the overall decline in the global TV market, thanks to our leading position in AIoT and huge user base. Smart TV shipments ranked No. 1 in mainland China for the third year in a row, according to All View Cloud (“AVC”), and were among the top five globally.
In 2021, global air conditioner shipments will exceed 2 million units, up and over 70% year-over-year. Xiaomi’s smart large home appliance category, which comprises air conditioners, refrigerators, and washing machines, saw strong growth in 2021, with revenue up and over 60% year-over-year. In this category, our smart air conditioner shipments exceeded 2 million units in 2021.
Xiaomi launched the Xiaomi Pad 5 series in August 2021, and it has since grown in popularity; according to Canalys, its shipments ranking in mainland China rose to No. 4 in the fourth quarter of 2021.
Xiaomi’s revenue for IoT and lifestyle products increased 26.1 % year-over-year to RMB85.0 billion in 2021.
Internet service business maintained solid growth while overseas contribution continued to expand
In 2021, our internet services business maintained solid growth despite increased industry challenges. In 2021, our internet services revenue reached RMB28.2 billion, an increase of 18.8% year-over-year.
In December 2021, the global MAU of MIUI increased 28.4% year-over-year to 508.9 million. Xiaomi added 112.5 million MAUs of MIUI globally in 2021, including 18.9 million new users in mainland China.
Meanwhile, the TV internet user base also maintained solid growth. In December 2021, MAU of our smart TV grew more than 29% year-over-year, and the number of TV paid subscribers increased 14.5% year-over-year to 4.9 million.
Our advertising revenue in 2021 is RMB18.1 billion, representing an increase of 42.3 % year-over-year, thanks to our expanding user base, a higher proportion of premium smartphones, and better monetization capabilities. Xiaomi’s advertising revenue in the fourth quarter of 2021 was RMB4.9 billion, having an increase of 34.0 % year-over-year, due to growth in global pre-installation revenue and overseas search revenue, which was the 8th consecutive quarter-over-quarter increase.
The internet services revenue overseas increased by 79.5% to RMB1.6 billion in the fourth quarter of 2021, driving Xiaomi’s growth momentum.
Increased in investment in R&D and talent development to drive innovation and technology advancement
In 2021, Xiaomi’s R&D expenditures reached RMB13.2 billion, an increase of 42.3% year-over-year. Aiming to pursue technology advancement as a core value, Xiaomi plans to invest more than RMB100 billion in research and development over the next five years.
Xiaomi attaches great importance to the development and retention of our technical talent. For the third year in a row, Xiaomi has held the Xiaomi Million Dollar Technology Award, with the CyberDog bio-inspired robot project team that takes away the award in 2021. This demonstrates our dedication to our engineers’ pioneering attitude and technological innovation. Xiaomi also announced new share incentive awards for young engineers, technology specialists, middle and senior management, and New 10-Year Entrepreneurship Program participants.
Xiaomi demonstrated relentless pursuit of cutting-edge technology by equipping our first proprietary ISP Surge C1 and charging chip Surge P1 in two premium flagship models, Xiaomi MIX FOLD and Xiaomi 12 Pro, respectively. With the launch of the liquid lens in Xiaomi MIX FOLD and the ProFocus algorithm on our latest Xiaomi 12 and Xiaomi 12 Pro, we emphasized our camera and imaging technology, further optimising the photography experience.
Xiaomi established its robotics lab in 2021 and produced the bio-inspired quadruped robot CyberDog Engineering Explorer Edition, as well as Xiaomi Smart Glasses, that represent the company’s extensive exploration of future technology.
Building on Xiaomi’s resilient business model, complete smart ecosystem and extensive user base, Xiaomi is set to overcome the macroeconomic headwinds, maintain solid growth momentum and achieve sustainable development.