Restrictions on Chinese firms could drive up 5G cost

Europe would have to pay an extra 55 billion euros ($62 billion) for 5G networks and suffer an 18-month technology delay if it bans telecom equipment purchases from top Chinese manufacturers, according to an industrial report.

The report by the GSM Association, which represents 750 mobile operators worldwide, said Ericsson, Nokia and Samsung, the non-Chinese contenders in the 5G market, do not have the capacity to handle all of the shift from 3G and 4G networks to 5G in Europe while honoring contracts already signed in North America and Asia.

Huawei and ZTE account for about 40 percent of the EU market, and Huawei is "currently a pioneer in 5G technology", according to the GSM analysis, first reported by Reuters and Agence France-Presse on Friday.