On Tuesday, Chinese companies are in the process of making advanced semiconductors by purchasing equipment used to produce chips from the US, regardless of the fact that there are new export curbs aiming to restrain development in the country’s semiconductor industry.
According to the 741-page annual report, which was released by the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission, takes aim at the Biden administration’s October 2022 export curbs to attempt to prevent Chinese chipmakers from getting US chipmaking equipment if they would be used in the production of advanced chips at the 14 nanometer node or below.The report stated that importers are often able to purchase the equipment if they claim it is being used on an older production line, and with limited capacity for end-use inspections. More importantly, it is difficult to verify the equipment is not being used to produce more advanced chips by the tech companies in China.
It comes as a surprise when the US struggles to determine how Huawei, a Chinese telecoms giant, was able to produce an advanced 7 nanometer chip to power its Mate 60 Pro smartphone at China’s top chipmaker, SMIC, despite the export curbs announced last year.
