Xiaomi expects huge uptick in smartphone sales this year

Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi Corp said on Wednesday that it sold more than 26 million smartphones in the first six months of the year, a year-on-year growth of 271 percent.

Lei Jun, chief executive of the company, said the figure is higher than Xiaomi's full-year shipment in 2013, when the Beijing-based company sold 19 million phones.

Xiaomi's January-June sales volume also more than doubled compared to a year ago, reaching 33 billion yuan ($5.5 billion), he said. Earlier this year, Xiaomi had said it plans to sell 60 million smartphones this year.