Recently, my country's foreign trade report card for the first three quarters was officially announced: the total import and export value of goods trade reached 39.94 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 18.8%, and the foreign trade market maintained steady growth. In this growth trend, the export performance of integrated circuits is particularly eye-catching. In the first three quarters, exports increased by 99.1% year-on-year, nearly doubling, becoming a very iconic category in this round of foreign trade growth.
The high growth of integrated circuit exports is closely related to the continuation of the current global AI investment boom. With the booming development of artificial intelligence, investment and construction of global computing power has accelerated, and the demand for computing power and power equipment has increased accordingly. On October 14, the State Council Information Office held a press conference to introduce the import and export situation in the first three quarters of 2026. Wang Jun, deputy director and spokesman of the General Administration of Customs, said that the booming development of artificial intelligence has accelerated the investment and construction of global computing power, and the demand for computing power terminal equipment and intermediate products required for manufacturing continues to expand; at the same time, with the operation of large-scale computing power facilities, the global demand for power equipment is also increasing simultaneously. Relying on a complete industrial system and technological innovation capabilities, my country provides solid support to cope with the growth in global computing power and electricity demand.
A set of export data from the computing power industry chain intuitively confirms this trend. Wang Jun introduced that in terms of computing power, my country's exports of integrated circuits increased by 99.1% in the first three quarters, computer parts and accessories increased by 2.1 times, and storage components such as solid-state drives increased by 1.3 times, ensuring a stable supply of intermediate products in the global computing power industry chain; exports of servers and other data processing equipment increased by 7.2%, assisting the construction of global computing power infrastructure. At the same time, my country's AI glasses, intelligent bionic robots and other end products continue to enter the international market, constantly enriching global artificial intelligence application scenarios.
At the press conference, Wang Jun, deputy director and spokesman of the General Administration of Customs, used a vivid statement to outline the complete supply map of my country's computing power-related industries. "From fingernail-sized high-speed optical communication modules to tons of AI computing power server cabinets, from a household wire to ultra-high voltage converter transformers for long-distance large-capacity power transmission, from portable power banks to large industrial and commercial energy storage equipment, from single small batteries to container-type integrated energy storage systems, thousands of Chinese companies are providing pragmatic, feasible, mature and reliable Chinese products, Chinese experience and Chinese solutions for global computing power construction, stable operation of power grids, and safe power supply," Wang Jun said.
The group of products listed above range from tiny components to heavy-duty cabinets, with a huge contrast in size, but they exactly demonstrate the integrity of the domestic upstream and downstream supporting systems: the industrial coverage chain is long and they have the ability to supply complete sets.
This complete supply capability is not only reflected on the product side, but also on the export side. The outstanding performance of the equipment manufacturing industry and intermediate product exports further consolidated this judgment. In the first three quarters, my country's equipment manufacturing industry played a strong leading role, contributing nearly 90% of the export increase; intermediate products accounted for more than half of the total export value, effectively playing the role of "stabilizing anchor" in the global production supply chain. Among them, integrated circuits, as a key category in intermediate product exports, are a concentrated expression of this complete supply capability and the stickiness of the industrial chain. Therefore, the nearly doubling of integrated circuit exports is not a short-term accidental trend. It is essentially a reshaping of the positioning of Made in China in the global computing power industry chain. my country has grown into an indispensable key supplier for the construction of global AI computing power. Compared with relying solely on price competition, the industrial stickiness formed by being deeply embedded in the industrial chain is stronger and the resilience against external shocks is stronger.
Of course, high export growth and stronger industrial stickiness indicate that opportunities are present; but the more this happens, the more we need to stay sober and calm. The integrated circuit industry is obviously cyclical and exports are growing rapidly, which does not mean that all links in the industry chain are autonomous and controllable. The more we are in the forefront of the industry, the more we must continue to strengthen shortcomings in chip design, manufacturing, equipment, materials and other fields. This high growth is an outstanding achievement and an important reminder. Facing the opportunities of the era of global AI computing power construction, we cannot stop at our current industrial position. Only by continuing to consolidate the industrial foundation and make up for the weak links in the industrial chain can we move steadily from being a key supplier of the global computing power industry chain to an industrial force with irreplaceable competitiveness.
