China's 5G phone shipments hit record monthly high

BEIJING - Shipments of 5G phones reached an all-time monthly high of 27.278 million units in China last month, data from the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology (CAICT) shows.

The figure accounted for 68 percent of the country's total mobile phone shipments in January, according to the CAICT, a research institute under the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.

A total of 23 new 5G phone models were rolled out last month -- 57.5 percent of all new models in the country in January, said the CAICT.

China will build more than 600,000 5G base stations in 2021, and the ministry will promote the construction and application of 5G networks in an orderly manner, accelerate 5G coverage in major cities, and advance co-construction and sharing.