US issues new restrictions on chip manufacturing exports to China

The Biden administration issued new restrictions Monday on exports of certain semiconductor chips and equipment to China, marking the Biden administration's latest crackdown to curb the country's competitive advancements in chipmaking.

The new export controls place more than 100 Chinese chipmaking tool manufacturers on a restricted trade list, prohibiting U.S. companies from sending them equipment without specific permission, the Commerce Department's Bureau of Industry and Security said Monday.

Leading chip equipment company Naura Technology Group is among the dozens of Chinese companies facing new restrictions.

The move also blocks the sales of certain chips, called "high-bandwidth memory," which are critical to artificial intelligence training, and some software tools, the federal agency added.

Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said the new restrictions seek to "impair" China's "ability to indigenize the production of advanced technologies that pose a risk to our national security."

"As technology evolves, and our adversaries seek new ways to evade restrictions, we will continue to work with our allies and partners to proactively and aggressively safeguard our world-leading technologies and know-how so they aren’t used to undermine our national security,” White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan added.

The announcement is likely one of the Biden administration's last attempts to hamper China's chip production and in turn, the development of military equipment and artificial intelligence (AI) systems that pose a risk to U.S. national security.

Reuters first reported the announcement.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Lin Jian told reporters Monday the export controls violate laws of market economy and disrupts international trade order.

"We have repeatedly made clear our position on this issue," Lin said. "China firmly opposes the U.S.'s overstretching the concept of national security, abusing export controls and maliciously blocking and suppressing China."

He said Beijing intends to take "resolute measures" to defense the interests of Chinese companies.

From the White House’s various restrictions on U.S. shipments of semiconductor chips and chipmaking equipment, along with the billions of dollars invested into semiconductor production, the Biden administration has made domestic chip manufacturing a major priority to stay ahead of China.

The 2022 CHIPS and Science Act set aside $53 billion to increase domestic chip production with hopes of making the U.S. less reliant on foreign supply chains.  

Monday's announcement comes about a month until President-elect Trump is sworn back into office. Trump is largely expected to continue a hard-line approach toward China.