US Targets China With Probe Into Semiconductor Industry

The Biden administration has launched a Section 301 investigation into China's semiconductor industry, citing concerns over non-market practices, supply chain dependencies, and national security risks. The Hill reports: In a fact sheet, the White House said China "routinely engages in non-market policies and practices, as well as industrial targeting, of the semiconductor industry" that harms competition and creates "dangerous supply chain dependencies."

The Biden administration said the Office of the United States Trade Representative would launch a Section 301 investigation to examine China's targeting of semiconductor chips for dominance, an effort to see whether the practices are unfairly hurting U.S. trade and take potential action. The investigation will broadly probe Chinese nonmarket practices and policies related to semiconductors and look at how the products are incorporated into industries for defense, auto, aerospace, medical, telecommunications and power. It will also examine production of silicon carbide substrates or other wafers used as inputs for semiconductors. The probe launches four weeks before President-elect Donald Trump takes office. "The effort could offer Trump a ready avenue to begin imposing some of the hefty 60% tariffs he has threatened on Chinese imports," notes Reuters.

"Departing President Joe Biden has already imposed a 50% U.S. tariff on Chinese semiconductors that starts on Jan. 1. His administration also has tightened export curbs on advanced artificial intelligence and memory chips and chipmaking equipment."

Do it

[Anonymous Coward]

Shoot your economy in the foot. Sanctions tend to backfire and make countries more self-sufficient. Meanwhile, US consumers will pay A WHOLE LOT more for tariffed goods. Inflation anyone? **rubs hands together**

Re:

[Archtech]

What are sanctions, if not "non-market policies and practices"?

Either we can have free trade - whose banefits are much touted - or we can have governments throwing their weight around, trying to bully others through sanctions, tariffs and the like.

Not both.

lool

[korgitser]

"routinely engages in non-market policies and practices, as well as industrial targeting, of the semiconductor industry" that harms competition and creates "dangerous supply chain dependencies."

Translation: China has industrial policy, it's working out for them, and the US is willing to bitch and moan and do anything but set up their own.

If the US wants actual results, tariffs aren't going to be enough. The West basically sold their legacy chip industry for scrap when demand fell during Covid times. Now they're bitching that China is eating up the market. China is also catching up to the bleeding edge, all the while the US is pulling Intels and Boeings... What's needed is to cut the rot, but the

Re:

[ZipNada]

>> do anything but set up their own

Chip factories are being built as a result of the CHIPS act, so clearly it was somewhat effective. I don't expect any sort of legislative investments like that over the next few years.

Re:

[Hoi Polloi]

They are barely moving ahead (e.g. TSMC) and as soon as the economic tit-for-tat crap stops they'll be uncompetitive and shutdown

Re:

[ZipNada]

I don't think trump has enough sense to support the initiative so you may be right.

The hypocrisy is breathtaking

[EreIamJH]

and said without a hint of self-awareness.

Ummm, chip export restrictions?

[poity]

Those must be pro-market...

I know the root cause of the problem

[Canberra1]

In the old days, when a US design engineer called a chip vendor for a price, the first question was where to they live - as if the price depended on that! (same for dvd zones etc) A zillion questions, and no pin-down on price. China and HK in the day offered substitutions and true market pricing - so people like Apple just moved the lot to China, but recently added microdot laser engraving to catch over-runs. Parts are sometimes functionally copied, with fake echo-back numbers. See self deleting drivers by