Shanghai sets up investment fund for IC industry development

SHANGHAI - Shanghai has established a 50 billion yuan ($7.5 billion) investment fund to boost the development of its integrated circuit (IC) industry, a local official announced Wednesday.

The initial round of fundraising was completed in September, said Huang Ou, deputy director of Shanghai Municipal Commission of Economy and Information Technology, at the IC China 2017 expo in Shanghai.

From now until 2020, the government-backed fund will attract more private investment in the IC industry, with the proposed combined investment totaling more than 300 billion yuan, Huang said at the expo.

As a leader in the IC industry, Shanghai has long regarded the high-tech sector as a pillar industry and given it strong support, he said.

In the first half of this year, Shanghai's IC sector reported a sales revenue of 50 billion yuan, up 12 percent year-on-year.

Shanghai will continue to develop its IC industry to make it a nationwide source of innovation, he said.