PCB shipments for 5G base station applications in China have slowed down after peaking in the second quarter, and the supply chain is concerned about when shipment momentum could be revived, according to industry sources.
The sources cited two major possible reasons behind the slowdown. One is that ZTE has redesigned its AAU (active antenna unit) modules to cut the use of US-sourced components, and the other is that China's 5G infrastructure clients are beginning to adjust their components inventory levels following a wave of intensive shipment pull-ins in the second quarter.
Taiwan's CCL makers Iteq and Taiwan Union Technology shared the view that if order placement momentum from Chinese clients, mainly major PCB makers including Shennan Circuits, Wus Prinited Circuit and Shengyi Technology, fail to pick up in the latter half of the third quarter, their shipments for 5G infrastructure applications could hardly reach originally-projected goals, the sources said.
The three Chinese firms are now the main PCB suppliers for China's 5G base stations, and their shipment performances can well reflect the real progress of 5G infrastructure construction in their country, the sources said.
In China, 5G infrastructure construction is proceeding too fast, and as the density of 5G base stations and their power consumption are both far higher than 4G's, telecom operators reportedly are forced to close 5G services during off-peak hours to reduce power expenses, the sources said.
The China government is enforcing a subsidization policy to boost 5G handset penetration, but resultant increases in monthly network service fees collected by telecom operators from consumers can hardly cover huge construction and maintenance costs for their 5G base stations, the sources added.
Article translated by Willis Ke
