A Chinese microchip is seen through a microscope at the 21st China Beijing International High-Tech Expo in Beijing, China, in 2018. China has imposed export curbs on two metals used in computer chips and solar cells, widening the trade squabble with Washington.
Ng Han Guan/AP
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Ng Han Guan/AP
A Chinese microchip is seen through a microscope at the 21st China Beijing International High-Tech Expo in Beijing, China, in 2018. China has imposed export curbs on two metals used in computer chips and solar cells, widening the trade squabble with Washington.
Ng Han Guan/AP
The Chinese government has announced that buyers of two metals used in computer chips and solar panels will have to apply for export permits, starting on August 1st. The metals, gallium and germanium, are also used in military applications.
The US has been imposing trade barriers for several years to try to limit China’s access to semiconductor technology. In a statement, the Chinese ministry of commerce said that the new controls on the export of the metals to protect China’s national interests.
“These controls are not a ban,” said NPR’s Emily Feng, reporting from Taipei. “But it is possible that China could reduce the amount it sells as compensation.”
It is a situation that the US and allied countries have long been concerned about – not only for these two very obscure metals, but for the many minerals that have been extracted and processed in China in large quantities.
China produces 60% of the world’s germanium and 80% of the world’s gallium, according to the Federation of Raw Critical Minerals. It is also controls supply chains for rare earth minerals used in many high-tech products, as well as the lithium, cobalt and graphite used in batteries.
Beijing’s move comes shortly before US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen is due to visit China. The relationship between the US and China is very difficult, to say the least. Trade – especially in semiconductors and raw materials – has been a particular source of tension.
Both the White House and a majority of Congress see China’s dominance of mineral supply chains as economic competition and a security threat.
The US, citing national security, has imposed its own export limits on semiconductor manufacturing equipment. The Netherlands, under pressure from the US, recently did the same.
