China expects slower rise in IC revenue

The revenue growth in China's integrated circuit market will slow this year after rising by double digits annually in past years due to the uncertain global economy, industry officials said yesterday.

But the domestic market may pick up next year on recovering demand, emerging opportunities in the power grid and smartphone markets and the booming design sector, analysts said.

In the first half of the year, China's integrated circuit market revenue totaled 85.2 billion yuan (US$13.5 billion), up 7.5 percent annually, the China Semiconductor Industry Association said.

But chip design revenue surged 20 percent in the first six months, triple the industry's growth rate.

Sales may decline but firms should ''invest to expand production capacity and upgrade technology," Xu Xiaotian, vice president of CSIA, said at a press conference for the three-day IC China 2012 exhibition, which opens at the Shanghai World Expo Exhibition Hall today.

Shanghai-based Huali and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp raised investment in Shanghai to boost output capacity for a possible recovery next year, said Xue Zi, vice secretary-general of the Shanghai Integrated Circuit Industry Association.

The problems facing the industry have caught the eye of the Chinese government and industry bodies which are planning policies to revive the industry, according to officials.