Chinese Imports of Chip Gear Hit Record $26 Billion This Year
- China has been stockpiling ASML systems and foreign machinery
- US and allies have been limiting China’s access to their tech
Employees work inside a chip plant.
Photographer: Billy H.C. Kwok/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Chinese imports of equipment to make semiconductors hit a record for the first seven months of this year as the Asian nation’s companies continue to ramp up their purchases in case the US and its allies further block them from buying.
Chinese firms imported almost $26 billion worth of chipmaking machinery, according to fresh trade data released by China’s General Administration of Customs this week. That surpassed the previous high mark in 2021 and comes as American, Japanese and Dutch officials work on increasing restrictions on Chinese companies.