Legislators have discovered that Chinese chip makers bought $ 38 billion in the United States and alliance tools

Written by Stephen Nils

San Francisco (Reuters) -in efforts made by the United States and allies to restrict China’s ability to manufacture advanced computing chips in China to buy approximately $ 40 billion of advanced chip making equipment, according to an investigation by legislators in the United States.

Democratic administrations and the American Republic have tried to restrict China’s ability to make fine chips, as the industry is very important for national security.

However, the contradictions in the rules issued by the United States, Japan and the Netherlands led to the sale of non -American tools for some Chinese companies that American companies were unable to do so, according to a report issued by the American House of Representatives chosen in China seen in Reuters.

The committee called for a broader ban by a group of allies in sales of chips making tools to China, rather than the narrower ban from the specified Chinese chips.

Last year, Chinese companies bought $ 38 billion of equipment from five senior suppliers of semiconductor manufacturing equipment, without breaking the law, an increase of 66 % over 2022, when many tool export restrictions were provided. The report found that about 39 % of the total sales of applied materials, Lam Research, KLA, ASML and TOKYO Electron.

The United States, which indicates national security concerns, aims to make China’s ability to make modern chips because it is decisive in areas such as artificial intelligence and military modernization. The great economic powers are also competing to sell advanced technology, such as artificial intelligence centers, to other countries.

“These are the sales that made China increasingly competitive in manufacturing a wide range of semiconductors, with deep effects on human rights and democratic values ​​around the world,” the report said.

In an interview, Mark Dujeriti, head of the American Tokyo Electron Unit, said that China sales in the industry began to decline this year, partly due to new regulations and welcomed more coordination between American and Japanese governments.

“I think it is clear, from the point of view of the United States, there is a still desirable result.”

Walm did not respond to a request for comment. ASML and KLA said they could not comment until seeing the entire report. The committee said that the tool makers cooperated with the report based on the report and were informed of its results.

Three Chinese companies have become major customers for the tool makers company – Swaysure Technology, Shenzhen Pengxinxu Technology Co and Sien (Qingdao) Circuits Integrated Dircuits – raises special security concern. Last year, the leaders of the Congress Committee, Chairman of the Board of Directors, John Molinaar, a Republican in Michigan, and a member of the arrangement Raja Krishnamurthi, a deristical Illinois, was placed in a letter to the Ministry of Commerce claiming its relations with a secret network that helps Huawei technologies and US officials to exports to them in December.