<article><p class="lead">China will build 600,000 base stations for the 5G telecommunication network in 2021, as it accelerates 5G infrastructure construction, according to the country's ministry of industry and information technology (MIIT). </p><p>The country will further promote 5G network construction and application next year, including accelerating the roll-out in major cities, MIIT minister of industry and information technology Xiao Yaqing said during a 28-29 December work conference. </p><p>There were <a href="https://metals.argusmedia.com/newsandanalysis/article/2169473">690,000</a> 5G cellular base stations in use as of the end of September, with more than 160mn users, according to MIIT data.</p><p>China has accelerated infrastructure construction to support the development of 5G in the past two years. </p><p>The country at the end of September announced new plans for strategic industries, aiming to <a href="https://metals.argusmedia.com/newsandanalysis/article/2144505">accelerate infrastructure construction</a> for some technology sectors including the 5G network.</p><p>China's 5G phone shipments stood at 144mn units during January-November, accounting for 51.4pc of the country's total phone shipments, data from the China academy of information and communications technology show.</p><p>The adoption of 5G is expected to boost demand for electronic and battery metals. The new generation of phones require high-efficiency power amplifiers that run on gallium arsenide or gallium nitride. The need for increased power to run 5G applications is prompting firms to manufacture larger lithium-cobalt batteries. </p><p>The sensors that enable V2X communication, a 5G car system developed by Chinese carmaker BYD and technology firm Huawei, use silicon-germanium (SiGe) compounds, and demand for SiGe has accelerated rapidly since the end of 2019, driven by optical fibre communication used in 5G infrastructure.</p></article>
