In the past year, ZTE’s challenges have been overshadowed by those of its larger compatriot, Huawei, but behind the scenes the company is showing strong signs of recovery despite geopolitics. Initially, it was in the USA’s cross-hairs to a greater extent than Huawei. It paid a fine of $1bn in 2017 after it was charged with breaking US sanctions, and in 2018 it was temporarily banned from acquiring US components. The ban was lifted when it paid another $1bn and made other changes, but it had suspended most operations in the meantime, and revealed just how reliant it was on US suppliers (more so than Huawei). But it came back from the brink of collapse remarkably quickly, based on its…