According to the latest customs data, from January to November 2023, China's total imports of integrated circuits decreased by more than 50 billion units, and the import value fell by 62.6 billion US dollars. This data has attracted attention and speculation, with many believing that this is due to an industry-wide decline due to sluggish domestic demand, but this is not the case.
According to the data of the National Bureau of Statistics, from January to October 2023, the output of domestic integrated circuits increased by 09%, up to 2765300 million. This shows that although the number of imported chips has decreased, domestic chip production is growing. This means that the self-sufficiency rate of domestic chips has increased, a large number of domestic substitutes have appeared on the market, and the demand for imported chips has decreased.
In the process, chip companies in the United States have suffered huge losses. Since the U.S. accounts for about 50 percent of the global market, U.S. companies will bear the brunt of China's reduced imports. It can be seen from the data of domestic imports of semiconductor equipment this year that China is expanding production on a large scale and is frantically importing semiconductor equipment. For example, China's imports of semiconductor equipment increased by 64% year-on-year in the third quarter, and some Chinese companies such as ASML, LamResearch and KLAC even exceeded 40% in revenue. And in October alone, China's total imports of various chip-making tools increased by 80% to $4.3 billion.
This shows that China is sparing no effort to introduce semiconductor equipment and stock up on the necessary equipment for chip manufacturing expansion. In fact, according to agency data, China has built as many as 44 wafer fabs, 22 are under construction, and 10 are under planning. It can be seen that while facing pressure, China is increasing investment, continuously improving chip production capacity and self-sufficiency, reducing dependence on chip imports, and the ultimate goal is to achieve a chip self-sufficiency rate of 70%.
The rise of China's independent chip industry has become one of the important changes in the global technology industry. In the past, China has relied on imports for chip design and production, and the technology and scale of domestic chips have lagged behind developed countries. However, with the strong support of China's leading enterprises and the independent innovation efforts of enterprises, China's independent chip industry is gradually developing and growing.
China** has given tremendous support in terms of technology research and development, financial support and policy guidance. For example, the national integrated circuit industry development and special funds have been launched to encourage and support enterprises to innovate in the fields of chip design and manufacturing. In addition, a series of preferential policies have been introduced to reduce the R&D costs and tax burden of enterprises, and attract a large number of talents and investment.
At the same time, China's technology companies are also actively engaged in chip R&D and production. Huawei, ZTE, HiSilicon and other companies have successively launched a series of self-developed chip products, which not only fill the gap in the domestic market, but also begin to compete on a global scale. For example, Huawei's Kirin chips excel in the field of mobile phones, and HiSilicon's AI chips have an advantage in the field of artificial intelligence. These successful cases have set an example for China's chip industry and increased the competitiveness of Chinese companies in the global market.
However, the rise of China's independent chip industry has not been without its challenges. In terms of technology, China still has certain gaps and shortcomings. Although important breakthroughs have been made in some areas, there is still a certain distance from the international leading level on the whole. In the market, Chinese chip companies are also facing pressure from international competitors, especially from the United States and other developed countries.
The future development of China's independent chip industry faces both challenges and huge opportunities. First of all, China needs to achieve independent innovation in core technologies and continuously improve its R&D capabilities and levels. At present, there are still some core technologies and patents missing in domestic chip companies, and they need to increase investment and cooperation, strengthen intellectual property protection, and promote independent innovation.
Second, China needs to strengthen the integration and innovation of the industrial chain to form a complete ecosystem. The chip industry is a highly integrated industry, involving multiple links such as design, manufacturing, packaging, and testing. China needs to develop more excellent chip design companies and manufacturing enterprises, and at the same time strengthen cooperation with related industries to build a world-leading chip industry chain.
In addition, China also needs to cultivate more chip talents and improve the quality and quantity of human resource supply. The chip industry needs a large number of highly skilled talents, especially professionals in design and manufacturing. China should increase cooperation between universities and enterprises, cultivate more outstanding chip talents, and enhance the innovation ability and competitiveness of the entire industry.
In the future development, China's independent chip industry is expected to gain more opportunities and market share. With the expansion of the Chinese market and the growth of domestic demand, the chip industry will become one of the important pillar industries of China's economy. At the same time, the support of national policies and the efforts of enterprises will also promote China's independent chip industry to the world stage and compete more fiercely with international competitors.
In this process, China needs to keep an open mind and promote international cooperation and exchanges. Through cooperation with internationally renowned enterprises, learning from and absorbing advanced technology and management experience, China's independent chip industry will be more competitive and influential, and make greater contributions to the development of the world's science and technology industry.
In short, the rise of China's independent chip industry is a long process, but it is also a promising process. In the face of huge challenges and opportunities, China** and enterprises need to work together to promote independent innovation, strengthen the integration of the industrial chain, cultivate talents, and build a world-leading chip industry. Only in this way can China's chip industry stand out from global competition and achieve true independence and control.