2024-04-10 - tech

China's integrated circuit exports in the first two months of 2024 were 160.71 b

China's import and export volumes and values of integrated circuits are showing signs of recovery.

On March 7th, the General Administration of Customs of China released data on the import and export volumes and values of key commodities nationwide. In the first two months, the cumulative import value of mechanical and electrical products was 974.08 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 11%; the cumulative export value was 2216.71 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 11.8%.

Among them, the import value of automatic data processing equipment and its components was 55.81 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 72.9%; the export value was 195.45 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 7.3%.

Diode and similar semiconductor devices were imported in quantities of 74.17 billion units, with an import value of 25.07 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 8.6%.

Mobile phones were exported in quantities of 123.745 million units, with an export value of 137.47 billion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 15.8%.

Integrated circuits were imported in quantities of 78.52 billion units, a year-on-year increase of 16.8%, with an import value of 388.68 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 19%; integrated circuits were exported in quantities of 39.41 billion units, a year-on-year increase of 6.3%, with an export value of 160.71 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 28.6%.

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Automobiles (including chassis) were imported in quantities of 103,000 units, a year-on-year decrease of 2.8%, with an import value of 42.93 billion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 13.2%; automobiles were exported in quantities of 831,000 units, a year-on-year decrease of 22.1%, with an export value of 111.89 billion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 15.8%.Automotive parts imported an amount of 28.5 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 0.6%, while exports amounted to 104.67 billion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 19.7%.

In 2023, China saw a reduction in the import and export of integrated circuits (ICs).

According to data released by the General Administration of Customs of China, both the quantity and value of integrated circuit (IC) imports and exports in China declined in 2023. It is noteworthy that the country is continuously increasing its local chip production to meet long-term development needs.

In terms of import data, China imported a total of 479.5 billion ICs in 2023, a decrease of 10.8% compared to 2022; the import value was $349.4 billion, a decrease of 15.4%. Additionally, the import volume of diodes and similar semiconductor components (representative of general commodity chips) in China also fell by 23.8% in 2023.

Regarding export data, China exported a total of 267.8 billion ICs in 2023, a decrease of 1.8% compared to 2022; the export value was $1.36 million, a decrease of 10.1%.

In 2023, under the influence of economic headwinds, the global consumer electronics sector, especially smartphones and laptops, continued to be sluggish. Moreover, under the export control measures of foreign countries, China faced severe restrictions in purchasing some advanced chips. Currently, the country is increasing local production to reduce the impact of dependence on imported chips.

Data from the General Administration of Customs shows that the production of chips in Mainland China increased in 2023. From January to October, the domestic production of integrated circuits reached 276.53 billion units, a year-on-year increase of 0.9%. In October alone, the production of integrated circuits was 31.28 billion units, a significant year-on-year increase of 34.5%, setting a new high in recent years.

Industry insiders analyze that the weak import of integrated circuits and semiconductor equipment in China reflects the global economic headwinds in 2023, especially the sluggish sales of smartphones and laptops in China. At the same time, Chinese companies are also striving to increase local chip production to reduce dependence on imported chips.

"On the one hand, there is a weak demand for low-end consumer electronics chips, and on the other hand, there is a ban on the sale of high-end AI chips with greater demand. These two main factors led to a sharp decline in China's chip import volume last year," said a domestic chip enterprise manager.Mature Process Technology Gains Momentum in Domestic Market

Thanks to the Chinese government's push for a more resilient chip supply chain, domestic Chinese manufacturers are actively increasing their production capacity in the traditional chip manufacturing sector. These chips are used in devices such as automobiles and home appliances and are not affected by the current U.S. restrictions. SMIC, Hua Hong Group, and Hefei Jinghe Integrated Circuit are the most aggressive in expanding production, focusing on special processes such as driver chips, CIS/ISP, and power semiconductor discrete devices.

Chinese companies are heavily investing in traditional chip manufacturing at a time when the global chip industry is on the verge of recovery.

Gartner analyst Sheng Linhai said, "Looking at the overall industry performance in 2023, the chip inventory for electronic products such as PCs and mobile phones has been largely consumed, which will drive further recovery in the industry in 2024."

Informa Tech Omdia's semiconductor research director He Hui also shares the same view. She said, "From the consumer perspective, electronic consumption and mobile phones are expected to perform better in 2024 than in 2023, and there is a trend of price increases for memory chips."

Statistical data from some institutions show that the production capacity of domestic Chinese semiconductor manufacturers grew by 12% year-on-year in 2023, reaching a capacity of 7.6 million wafers per month, and it is expected to increase by 13% year-on-year in 2024, reaching a capacity of 8.6 million wafers per month. Analysts believe that most of the mature chip demand in the country can be met by local production.

TrendForce predicts that by 2027, China's share of mature process capacity in the global market will increase from 31% in 2023 to 39%, and there is room for further growth if equipment procurement progresses smoothly.

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