New US chip sanctions to hit Chinese tool makers, but Japan, Netherlands exempt


The US will launch its third crackdown in three years on China’s semiconductor industry on Monday, restricting exports to 140 companies including chip equipment maker Naura Technology Group, among other moves, according to two people familiar with the matter.

The effort to hobble Beijing’s chipmaking ambitions will also hit Chinese chip toolmakers Piotech and SiCarrier Technology with new export restrictions as part of the package, which also takes aim at shipments of advanced memory chips and more chipmaking tools to China.

The move marks one of the Biden Administration’s last large scale effort to stymie China’s ability to access and produce chips that can help advance artificial intelligence for military applications or otherwise threaten US national security.

It comes just weeks before the swearing in of Republican former president Donald Trump, who is expected to keep in place many of Biden’s tough-on-China measures.

The package includes curbs on China-bound shipments of high bandwidth memory (HBM) chips, which are critical for high-end applications like AI training; new curbs on 24 additional chipmaking tools and three software tools; and new export restrictions on chipmaking equipment manufactured in countries including Singapore and Malaysia.

The booth of Naura Technology booth at Semicon China in March 2024. Photo: Che Pan
The booth of Naura Technology booth at Semicon China in March 2024. Photo: Che Pan

The tool controls will likely hurt Lam Research, KLA and Applied Materials, as well as non-US companies like Dutch equipment maker ASM International.



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