China’s Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. said it could become the world’s largest smartphone seller this year, showing that the tech giant remains bullish despite rising regulatory hurdles and tightening scrutiny overseas.

Huawei, the world’s second-biggest phone-maker behind South Korea’s Samsung, said Thursday its consumer business sales exceeded a record $52 billion in 2018, reflecting strong sales of its smartphones.

Huawei has won 30 commercial contracts globally, more than half of which are in Europe, for the next-generation 5G telecom network, Ryan Ding, the company's executive director and carrier business chief, said.

By the end of 2018, Huawei shipped more than 25,000 5G base stations globally, according to Ding. The company is set to launch a foldable smartphone powered by its new 5G chipset next month.

As Huawei races for a leading position in the coming 5G era, the company faces intensifying scrutiny amid accusations that the company poses security threats because of alleged links to the Chinese government, which the company denies. Huawei is largely shut out of the U.S. market and has been banned from taking part in 5G network development in several Western countries.

Related: In-Depth: Huawei’s Odyssey Heads Into Uncharted Waters