Chinese companies gain ground in patent stakes

China has become the only country witnessing an increase in the number of patents granted by the United States in 2018, according to a recent report from leading global patent database IFI Claims Patent Services.

"Chinese companies, led by Huawei and BOE Technology, gained ground. In fact, China was the only country in the top 10 to actually show an increase in US patent activity; all other countries, including the US, saw declines," Larry Cady, a senior analyst at IFI Claims Patent Services, said in a posted article on technology blog Venture-Beat.

The report shows the US Patent & Trademark Office issued 308,853 utility grants in 2018, a decline of 3.5 percent year-on-year.