Three Chinese firms enter world semiconductor industry top 20

In a milestone for China's semiconductor industry, three Chinese equipment manufacturers were ranked among the world's top 20 by sales for the first time in 2025, according to data from Japanese research firm Global Net.

This marks a rise from just one company in the pre-US-government-restriction era of 2022, underscoring accelerated progress in bolstering the domestic supply chain.

The sales ranking reveals a big climb for State-backed Naura Technology Group, which jumped from eighth place in 2022 to fifth in 2025. It now trails only global giants ASML, Applied Materials, Lam Research and Tokyo Electron.

Founded in 2001, Naura produces a range of equipment including etchers and deposition tools. The Shenzhen-listed company has not disclosed its annual revenue for 2025 yet, and Shanghai-based financial services provider Suntime complied forecasts from multiple securities companies to estimate its revenue to stand between 46.8 to 52 billion yuan ($7.47 billion) for the past year.

New to the list at 13th place is Advanced Micro-Fabrication Equipment Inc China (AMEC). Established by engineers with work experience at Lam Research and Applied Materials, AMEC's core etching equipment is reportedly used in the production lines of 5-nanometer chips, bringing its technology close to the cutting edge. The company operates in China and South Korea.

Shanghai Microelectronics Equipment Co Ltd, specializing in lithography machines that "print" circuit patterns onto silicon wafers, secured the 20th position. While acknowledging a generational gap with market leader ASML, the Shanghai-based company's presence highlights domestic capability in this most critical and challenging segment.

Expanding the list to the top 30 would include two more Chinese firms: ACM Research and Hwatsing Technology.