Tech war: top Chinese chip maker SMIC under the spotlight for ‘breakthrough’ 5G processor used in Huawei’s latest Mate smartphone

Huawei Technologies’ latest 5G smartphone has thrown an intense spotlight on Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp (SMIC) after a third-party teardown of the handset indicated that mainland China’s top contract chip maker was behind its advanced processor, which could prompt US government action for violating existing trade sanctions.

SMIC’s share price has gained nearly 20 per cent in Hong Kong and 15 per cent in Shanghai since Huawei launched presales of its new Mate 60 Pro last week, as investors bet that the country’s largest semiconductor foundry produced the Kirin 9000s chipset that powers the smartphone.