Vodafone is reportedly looking at the possibility of buying a 50% stake in Chinese handset manufacturer, Huawei, put up for sale last week. The South China Morning Post reports that along with Vodafone, US operator AT&T as well private equity companies had expressed interest in the handset manufacturer.
Huawei made an attempt at taking a minority stake in a US based company, 3Com, which created a backlash from US politician because of the company’s founder and president, Ren Zhengfei’s military background. A joint US or European owner could ease the company’s operations in these markets.
Huawei currently provides branded mobile handsets to Vodafone.