The White House has announced a new investigation into Chinese trade practices, accusing it of practices that have reduced competition in the semiconductor industry. US President Biden's administration says that China "routinely engages in non-market policies and practices," to harm competition and create dependencies for "foundational semiconductors."
The Office of the US Trade Representative will head the investigation and examine the impact of China's policies and practices for "the production of silicon carbide substrates or other wafers used as inputs into semiconductor fabrication."
A spokesperson for China's Ministry of Commerce told the New York Times (via Engadget) that the country "strongly deplores and opposes" the investigation. It will "take all necessary measures to resolutely defend its rights and interests."
Tensions have been running high between the two countries since 2022 when US President Biden announced new export rules that curbed the supply of GPUs, CPU lithography machines, and design software to China. Earlier this year, The US raised import tariffs on imported Chinese products.
China fired back in 2023, banning the use of Apple iPhones, AMD, and Intel CPUs in government agencies and companies. In October, it announced an investigation into Nvidia alleging anti-monopoly violations in the company's $6.9 billion acquisition of Israeli network products supplier Mellanox Technologies in 2020. Earlier this month, China banned exports of key minerals for microchip production to the US.
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