US set to further tighten chipmaking exports to China

Flags of China and US are displayed on a printed circuit board with semiconductor chips, in this illustration picture taken Feb 17, 2023. REUTERS/Florence Lo/Illustration/File Photo

The Biden administration is working to further tighten restrictions on exporting semiconductor manufacturing gear to China, Bloomberg News reported on Friday citing people familiar with the situation.

The government has briefed US companies about the plan and told them it expects to announce the restrictions as early as next month, the report said.

The Biden administration plans to coordinate with the Netherlands and Japan, according to the report.

This week, Dutch government said it plans new restrictions on semiconductor technology exports to China to protect national security.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said on Thursday that China was firmly opposed to the restrictions as a means "to intervene and limit normal economic and trade exchanges between Chinese and Dutch companies."

The US had imposed a slew of export restrictions late last year including a measure to cut China off from certain semiconductor chips made anywhere in the world with US equipment.