Sales Surge by 73%—Who Is Behind the Frenzied Purchase of "Outdated" Chips Made in China?
During the first two months of 2026, China’s export value of integrated circuits reached approximately $43.3 billion, up nearly 73% year-on-year, while export volume reached around 52.5 billion chips, also showing synchronized growth. These products are primarily manufactured using mature processes above 28 nanometers. Over the past year and a half, Chinese semiconductor companies have significantly increased investment in related production capacity. In 2025, annual output hit an all-time high, laying a solid foundation for this year’s exports. Most exported goods are first shipped to Hong Kong, where they serve as a logistics hub, undergoing consolidation and redistribution to other markets. Vietnam has seen a notable increase in share, with local electronics assembly factories directly incorporating these chips into their domestic production lines. South Korea and Taiwan maintain stable procurement levels, integrating these chips into their regional supply chains.
Factories in Malaysia, India, Singapore, Thailand, and other regions have also placed large orders, utilizing these chips in equipment manufacturing stages. Companies from the United States, Japan, the Netherlands, Germany, and beyond obtain these components through direct imports or trade networks, incorporating them into their own production processes. The overall export flow spans major Asian manufacturing hubs and reaches parts of Europe and North America, forming a diversified supply network. Chips produced via mature processes play a foundational supporting role within the global supply chain. High-performance processors require accompanying power management units, controllers, and driver circuits to ensure stable operation. These chips are widely used in automotive electronics for signal processing and system stability regulation. In home appliance manufacturing, control boards rely on such chips to perform timing, sensing, and power distribution functions.
Industrial equipment and IoT devices utilize analog chips and microcontrollers for data acquisition and instruction execution. The packaging process of memory products depends on these fundamental components to assist in computation. New energy devices such as photovoltaic systems and electric vehicle charging stations extensively adopt related power chips. Demand for such products has consistently accounted for a high proportion in the global chip market, supporting the operation of most end-user devices. Chinese enterprises have established a fully self-reliant, vertically integrated industrial chain spanning design, wafer fabrication, to packaging and testing. Unaffected by external constraints, companies can flexibly adjust production based on order demands. With competitive pricing and proven quality validated by the market, these products have gained international buyers’ recognition and gradually been included in standard procurement lists.
High-end computing equipment manufacturers pair these chips with core components to produce servers and data center equipment. Memory industry firms leverage auxiliary chips to enhance system performance. Consumer electronics assembly lines widely apply these components to achieve interface connectivity and power optimization. This collaboration fosters complementarity across the global industrial chain, enabling continuous integration of Chinese-made chips into various production stages. Expansion of manufacturing in India and Southeast Asia drives rising demand for chips, enabling rapid transformation of shipments into finished products. Electronics industrial bases in Vietnam receive chips and combine them with other components to complete device assembly.
Logistics nodes in Malaysia and Singapore handle sorting and distribution of goods to surrounding factories. European and American buyers secure components through stable channels, using them for updating automotive and industrial control equipment. Each link in the supply chain works in coordination to support enhanced manufacturing capabilities across multiple countries. This kind of trade activity has remained frequent during the first several months of 2026, reflecting sustained market confidence in mature-process chips. Chinese enterprises, relying on their independent capabilities, ensure stable delivery, helping maintain orderly global electronics manufacturing operations.
Original article: toutiao.com/article/1860719125642312/
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