Feb. 21, 2012 (China Knowledge) - ZTE Corp<000063><0763>, the second-largest telecom equipment provider in China, has signed agreements with U.S.-based Qualcomm Inc and Broadcom Corp to purchase chipsets worth a total of US$5 billion in the next few years.

In a statement filed with the Shenzhen Stock Exchange, ZTE said it has agreed to buy at least US$4 billion of chipsets from Qualcomm from 2012 to 2015, and to purchase chipsets worth US$1 billion from California-based Broadcom between 2012 and 2014.

Based on the prices of US$14 to US$15 per chip produced by the two U.S. firms, ZTE would buy a total of 360 million chips, or around 90 million chips per year, in the coming four years, said analysts, adding that the move is in line with ZTE's market expansion plans of smartphones, or tablet PCs.

In addition, ZTE has inked a deal with Success Electronics Ltd<002289> for the procurement of LCD displays worth RMB 2.3 billion.

Last year, ZTE saw its global sales of smartphones total more than 12 million units, reflecting a jump of five folds. The sales are estimated to double this year, mainly due to strong demands in the Europe, North America, Brazil and Japan.