Intel and Qualcomm want the Huawei bans lifted

The Huawei ban was supposed to sway the outcome of the U.S. – China trade wars, as many U.S.-based agreed to cut ties with the Chinese company, but this move might prove to cause more harm on the U.S. economy than previously estimated. There is no progress without significant sacrifices, they say, yet companies like Intel, Qualcomm and Xilinx are now reconsidering their stance for the sake of profits. Reuters informs that the three companies already tried to press the U.S. Commerce Department in order to ease the bans on Huawei beyond August 2019.

Intel, Qualcomm and Xilinx are arguing that, while Huawei’s 5G networks could pose security threats, most of the tech coming from China is not yet 5G-compatible and is a lot less susceptible to security breaches. Additionally, these companies could see their profits significantly reduced since Huawei is now unable to buy needed smartphone components form them. In 2018 alone, Huawei spent US$11 billion on components coming from Intel, Qualcomm and Micron Technologies. Nevertheless, Huawei anticipated such problems and managed to stockpile components from other Chinese suppliers so it would be able to continue manufacturing devices for at least a year.

Huawei’s Vice President of Public Affairs Andrew Williamson stated that the three aforementioned companies were not in any way contacted by Huawei to lobby with the U.S. government, and the Chinese company is preparing for the worst outcomes that predict a 60% drop in global shipments.