News briefing
　　According to the forecast by the IDC in August, global shipments of smartphones will likely decline by nearly 10% in 2020. However, it is expected that smartphone consumption will resume growth in 2021, driven by the powerful demand for 5G technology. It is estimated that by 2023, global sales of 5G mobile phones will share equal footing with current market alternatives.

Impact Analysis 
　　Despite the reduction in output that many mobile phone brands have exercised in 2020 to cope with the decline in market demand, most of these reductions relate to 4G models, whereas 5G remains the priority technology for each mobile phone company. According to the IDC, the global market is, as a whole, currently facing rather poor economic conditions which are unconducive to successful marketing of high-priced 5G mobile units. The unfortunate timing of the economic downturn is such that as China strives forward with its 5G technological advancements, the market is not in a position to receive it. This should greatly boost the pressure on 5G mobile phone companies to decrease prices wherever possible, so that the average selling price (ASP) will decline much faster than expected by the rest of the world. It is estimated that the worldwide ASP of 5G smartphones should drop to US$495 by 2023. Improved technology coupled with affordability can greatly arouse the consumer’s desire to upgrade their mobile device, and it is predicted that the sales of 5G mobile phones will account for 50% of the overall smartphone market by 2023, with the speed of this conversion surpassing that of 3G to 4G.
　　Smartphones are believed to be the flagship product of Taiwan’s PCB industry. Due to the rapid upgrade of smartphone specifications driven by developing 5G technology and the significant increase in the technical threshold of PCB products, Taiwanese manufacturers are likely to maintain the high standard of their product development. This has been demonstrated by the overall output value in 2020 thus far. Although 5G smartphone technology has scope for price reduction over the next few years, it still exerts higher market value over alternative mobile phone technology in terms of technical specifications and pricing. Were 5G mobile phones soon to become a highly demanded commodity, the industry could rapidly regain momentum at a time when global mobile phone demand is unable to grow significantly. As Taiwanese manufacturers are mainly positioned to supply mid-to-high-end products, overcoming the initial difficulties of the effects of the pandemic of 2020 could provide numerous business opportunities in the early days of transition between 4G and 5G communication generations.