US-China Tech Race: Huawei's 5G New Chip Presents Challenge To Apple's Dominance

Huawei Technologies Co. has thrown down the gauntlet in the world of smartphones with its Kirin 9000s processor, showcasing its capability to support lightning-fast 5G wireless speeds.

Bloomberg reported Friday that the Mate 60 smartphone series, equipped with the Chinese-made Kirin chip, stormed into the market. Over 300,000 units were sold in its first two weeks in China, according to data from Counterpoint Research.

Impressive Debut of Mate 60 Series

Notably, it secured the second position on China’s sales charts, in the week prior to the highly anticipated iPhone 14 launch by Apple Inc. AAPL.

The made-in-China processor, embedded in the Mate 60 series, sparked a surge of patriotic pride and enthusiasm among Chinese smartphone buyers.

One of the closely guarded secrets pertained to key specifications, particularly the 5G capabilities of Huawei’s latest devices.

Recent tests conducted by Bloomberg News have put these doubts to rest, confirming the presence of 5G speeds. This milestone is significant, especially in light of Huawei’s ongoing struggle with US sanctions over the past three years.

Global smartphone manufacturers have strongly relied on suppliers like Skyworks Solutions Inc. SWKS and Qualcomm Inc. QCOM for their wireless communication chip needs.

The Huawei Mate 60 series has not only garnered consumer attention but has also emerged as a potent rival in the Chinese market, offering fierce competition to the dominant iPhone, particularly in the above-$600 price segment.

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Chinese Tech Stocks Languish

The Invesco China Technology ETF CQQQ is currently on track to end its fourth straight week of losses, falling to levels last seen at the end of October 2022.

The fund investing in Chinese tech companies like Tencent Music Entertainment Group TME, PDD Holdings Inc. PDD and Baidu Inc. BIDU has plummeted over 20% year to date, sharply underperforming the Nasdaq-focused Invesco QQQ Trust QQQ, up 36%.

Chart: US Tech Stocks Have Largely Outperformed Chinese Peers In 2023

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