The 2022 World 5G Conference has wrapped up in the Chinese city of Harbin. Our reporter Yu Li spoke to experts about the current status of China's semiconductor and chip industries amid US restrictions.

Experts say mobile communication as a downstream industry of integrated circuits, has played a very powerful role in promoting the development of the semi-conductor industry.

PROFESSOR WEI SHAOJUN International Eurasian Academy of Sciences Tsinghua University "There is no doubt that the development of mobile communications has provided a very large market for China's semiconductor industry. It's a big driving force for the industry to grow."

Wei believes China's role in the chip industry chain is growing, a point shared by another expert.

YE TIANCHUN Secretary General, China Integrated Circuit Innovation Alliance "The integrated circuit industry is very large and highly globalized. Each country has a different division of labor with its own characteristics. China is the largest electronics manufacturer in integrated circuit applications. China's chip packaging is also at the forefront globally. Three of the world's top ten packaging companies are Chinese."

Ye says China's chip manufacturing capacity is very large, but it mainly covers mid-end products, and it still needs to increase its high-end production capacity. And the country may face a big challenge amid restrictions from the US.

YE TIANCHUN Secretary General, China Integrated Circuit Innovation Alliance "The biggest challenge comes from the deglobalization policy of the United States. In recent years, the United States has been decreasing R&D cooperation with China and the US 'Chip and Science Act' is the latest move. It causes no problems to support its own businesses, but restricts technological cooperation and investment in certain countries, especially China, is violation of world trade rules. The United States is trying to reverse decades of globalization. This is a big challenge for China. So, China must consider the security of its own industrial chain and build a globalized ecosystem with countries that are willing to cooperate with China."

On that matter, Professor Wei thinks it's not easy for the US to turn things around.

PROFESSOR WEI SHAOJUN International Eurasian Academy of Sciences, Tsinghua University "The global semiconductor industry has grown through open cooperation over the past few decades. It is more global than any other industry. So, I don't think it's realistic to artificially disconnect the supply chain."