New Delhi, Oct. 12 -- Huawei's foldable phones have moved beyond a small experimental product line, at least by the company's own shipment tally. An executive says cumulative shipments have passed 20 million units, a milestone that spans several years of devices rather than one year of consumer purchases.

Huawei Central reported on October 12 that Li Xiaolong, chief technology officer of Huawei's Consumer Business Group, disclosed the figure. The outlet's headline describes phones as sold, but its account of Li's statement uses shipped. This article follows the shipment wording because the two measures are not interchangeable.

The tally is a company claim relayed by the specialist outlet, not an independently audited retail-sales total....