Vice Premier Liu He has called for efforts to mobilize resources nationwide to promote the development of integrated circuits, and offer real national treatment to foreign chip experts, which industry insiders say is signaling a new round of more flexible supportive policies for the semiconductor sector amid curbs from the United States. During a tour to IC enterprises in Beijing, Liu said that to develop the industry, China should take advantage of a new system for mobilizing resources nationwide and should make better use of government and market resources. He urged the government to formulate industrial policies in line with national conditions and new situations, play an organizational role in areas where the market fails, and guide long-term investment in the field. Efforts should also be made to form a mechanism to tackle major problems, where companies act as the main players, and rely on entrepreneurs to achieve healthy development of the IC industry.
“It shows that China is now seeking more flexible supportive policies in order to better mobilize resources in the IC industry so as to avoid wasting time and resources while exploring ways to solve bottlenecks,” said Roger Sheng, Vice President of Research at U.S. market research company Gartner. Right after the Vice Premier's call, smartphone maker Xiaomi and software and cloud company Kingsoft, along with a handful of other investors, set up a CNY10 billion fund to develop chips and related technologies. “Amid U.S. chip sanctions, Liu’s visit is expected to give strong confidence to companies and the entire chip market. It also sends a signal that a supportive policy for the semiconductor industry is likely to be launched soon,” said Wang Peng, Researcher at the Beijing Academy of Social Sciences.
In addition, Liu highlighted the necessity of providing equal treatment for domestic talent alongside real national treatment for foreign experts so as to allow companies to better attract talent in the field. “The remarks made clear that the country will give more preferential policies to high-end talent in the semiconductor sector,” Wang added. As the world’s largest chip market, the Chinese mainland consumes more than half of the world’s semiconductors, which are then assembled into tech products to be reexported or sold in the domestic market, according to research company Daxue Consulting. Microsoft Co-founder Bill Gates recently said that he did not get the logic of current U.S. sanctions on China and does not think the U.S. will ever be successful in preventing China from having cutting-edge chips, the China Daily reports.
