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ASML chip: Export to China should be restricted
Photo: DADO RUVIC / REUTERS
Japan, the Netherlands and the USA want to set tighter limits on China's economic ambitions in the future.
According to a report by »Bloomberg«, talks on this topic are already well advanced.
Among other things, this involves restricting the export of semiconductor production systems.
According to insiders, one of the measures could be taken by the Dutch ASML Holding, which produces such machines for the production of semiconductors.
Their exports to China are likely to be prevented in the future.
Japan will impose similar restrictions on Nikon, the report said.
diplomatic success
A Japanese government spokesman said "appropriate steps" would be taken based on the regulatory measures.
One company that could also be affected by the future restrictions would be Tokyo Electron, which derives about a quarter of its sales from semiconductor technology in China.
If the Netherlands and Japan introduced stricter export controls for China, it would be a major diplomatic success for the administration of US President Joe Biden.
The USA had already announced far-reaching restrictions on the export of US chip technology to China in October.
The goal is to slow Beijing's technological and military advances.
But without the participation of Japan and the Netherlands in the embargo, US companies would be at a competitive disadvantage.
Japan expects sales of affected chip companies to recover quickly as the market for their equipment grows, a trade and industry official involved in monitoring semiconductor companies told Reuters.
“A balance must be struck so that no one from Japan, the United States and Europe is disproportionately disadvantaged.
It's about fairness," said Masahiko Hosokawa, a professor at Meisei University in Tokyo and a former director-general at the Ministry of Economy and Trade.
According to Reuters news agency, Dutch officials insisted during the negotiations that the new controls take into account national security concerns and do not favor US chip companies.
mike/Reuters