ZTE was accused of violating US trade sanctions against Iran and North Korea and the company plead guilty to those charges. It has agreed to pay a settlement of $892 million, a fine that pushed the company’s bottom line in the red – a $760 million loss for the final quarter of 2016. The company could be on the hook for another $300 million if it violates the conditions of the settlement.
The quarter before that ZTE posted a profit of $158 million, but the fine was big enough to put the company’s profits for the whole 2016 into the negative – a $343 million loss, instead of the expected…