Tech war: Chinese chip output up 3.8 per cent in April, first monthly growth in 16 months

Production data for ICs was up 3.8 per cent year on year to 28.1 billion units in April, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics on Tuesday

The uptick comes as China’s chip imports from South Korea and Taiwan have plunged, reflected in the overall IC import data which shrank 21 per cent in the first four months

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This photo taken on February 28, 2023 shows a worker on a chip production line in Suqian, in China’s eastern Jiangsu province. Photo: AFP

Ann Caoin Shanghai

Published: 5:30pm, 16 May 2023

China’s integrated circuit (IC) output in April saw its first monthly uptick in 16 months, as Beijing continues to push local industry to boost domestic chip production in the face of declining imports amid US restrictions.

Production data for ICs, which covers companies with an annual turnover above 20 million yuan (US$2.9 million), showed 3.8 per cent year-on-year growth to 28.1 billion units in April, the first monthly increase since January 2022, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Tuesday.

The increase came after March output recorded a decline of just 3 per cent from a year ago, compared with the 17 per cent year-on-year drop in the first two months, pointing to a recovery in chip production in the world’s largest semiconductor market.

The uptick in output comes at a time when China’s chip imports from South Korea and Taiwan have plunged, reflected in the overall IC import data. In the first four months of the year, China’s total IC imports shrank 21 per cent from a year ago to 146.8 billion units, according to data released last week by the General Administration of Customs.

As the US moved to tighten restrictions on China’s access to advanced semiconductor technologies and equipment, China has shifted to producing more legacy chips to meet domestic demand from carmakers and home appliance manufacturers.