China will ban the export to the United States of materials related to gallium, gramanium, antimony and ultra-hard materials that have potential military applications, the Commerce Ministry said on Tuesday, a day after Washington’s latest crackdown on China’s chip sector.
Beijing’s directive on so-called dual-use items, which it says are to protect national security and interests, requires a more stringent review of the end-use of graphite items shipped to the United States.
The Chinese directives will be implemented with immediate effect.
“In principle, gallium, germanium, antimony and superhard materials will not be allowed to be exported to the United States,” the ministry said.
Strengthening restrictions
The current restrictions would enhance those on exports of vital minerals that Beijing began rolling out last year, but apply only to the United States in the latest escalation of trade tensions between the world’s two largest economies before President-elect Donald Trump takes office.
But, according to Reuters, there were no Chinese shipments of germanium or gallium to the United States this year until last October, even though it was the fourth and fifth largest market for the two metals, respectively, a year ago, according to Chinese customs data.
Gallium and germanium are used in semiconductors, while germanium is also used in infrared technology, fiber optic cables, and solar cells.
Likewise, China’s overall shipments of antimony products in October fell 97% from September after Beijing’s move to limit its exports took effect.
Last year, China accounted for 48% of the world’s extracted antimony, which is used in ammunition, infrared guided missiles, nuclear weapons and night vision goggles, as well as in batteries and photovoltaic energy equipment.
Additional US restrictions
This comes after the United States yesterday issued new restrictions on the export of some semiconductor chips and equipment to China, citing national security reasons.
The ministry said, in a statement, that the measures “are intended to weaken” China’s ability to produce advanced semiconductors “that can be used in the next generation of advanced weapons systems, and in artificial intelligence and advanced computing, which have important military applications.”
The new measures include censoring 24 types of semiconductor manufacturing equipment and 3 types of software tools used in semiconductor development or production that contribute to promoting China’s military modernization, according to the Industrial Security Agency of the Ministry of Commerce, and other amendments enhance the effectiveness of previous restrictions.
The measures, which took effect yesterday, include adding more than 100 entities to the prohibited trade list, which means American companies will need to request special permission to send equipment to them.
The additions include “semiconductor factories, instrument companies, and investment companies working under Beijing’s direction to advance China’s goals in advanced chips, which pose a threat to the national security of the United States and its allies,” according to the agency.
US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said: “This action is the culmination of the targeted approach taken by the Biden-Harris administration to weaken China’s ability to produce advanced technologies that pose a threat to our national security.”
She added that the additional restrictions on exports “underscore” the Department of Commerce’s “central role” in the US national security strategy.
