China's Huawei Technologies is plotting a return to the 5G smartphone industry by the end of this year, according to research firms, signaling a comeback after a U.S. ban on equipment sales decimated its consumer electronics business.
Huawei should be able to procure 5G chips domestically using its own advances in semiconductor design tools along with chipmaking from Semiconductor Manufacturing International Co. (SMIC), three third-party technology research firms covering China's smartphone sector said.
The firms, citing industry sources including Huawei suppliers, spoke on condition of anonymity because of confidentiality agreements with clients.