HTC announces $21 million in profits on revenue of $1.37 billion

For the third quarter, HTC has announced that it earned $21 million in profit on revenue of $1.37 billion. Although this is a huge improvement over the hundred million dollar loss they reported in the year-ago quarter, the company remains in a shaky financial situation. Most of the return to profitability is accounted for by drastic cost-cutting policy rather than increases in devices sale.

HTC Corp. said Friday it was profitable for a second consecutive quarter, but the company continued a three-year revenue decline as competition from low-priced Chinese phone makers remains fierce. The Taiwanese smartphone maker has spent the past year cutting costs and diversifying from its high-end flagship line, after falling into the red last year for the first time since its public listing in 2002. While the cost cuts have returned HTC to a narrow profit, it has yet to find a way to reverse the slide in sales. HTC has lost share to market leaders like Apple Inc. AAPL -0.39% and to rapidly growing low-cost Chinese rivals like Xiaomi.