In May, the production volume of integrated circuits in China amounted to 29.9 billion units, reaching a single- month high , according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics.

Detail: China’s output of integrated circuits in May jumped 37.6% year-over-year from the same period of 2020, and it slightly increased from 28.7 billion units in April and 29.1 billion in March.

In the first five months of this year, China produced 139.9 billion IC units, representing a year-over-year growth of 48.3 per cent compared to the same period last year

In a separate statistic, China’s automobile output for may slid by 5 per cent year on year as the production of car affected by global chip shortage.

The production of new energy vehicle surged 166.3 percent to 237,000 units as the country is on the right track to achieve higher percentage new energy vehicle sales- China’s State Council said the share of New Energy Vehicles, which includes electric, plug in hybrid and hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles, will account for 20% of total new car sales in China by 2025.

The latest data showed that China is ramping up its effort to develop its own semiconductor industry and reduce reliance on imports.

According to corporate information platform Qichacha, in the first five months of 2021, 15,700 newly registered companies were chip-related companies in China, which is more than tripled compared to same period of 2020.

Context: Despite IC production surged in China, China is still imported more semiconductor unit than the previous year.

IC imports rose 30 per cent in the first five months of 2021 compared to the same period in 2020, reaching 260.35 billion units, which is nearly double China’s domestic production in the same period.

China increased its semiconductor production and imports as the world is struggling with a semiconductor shortage that has caused production issues in automobiles, smartphones, computers and even home appliance and personal computer sectors.