ASML said the Dutch government had partially revoked an export license to ship some chipmaking equipment to China, which would affect some of its Chinese clients.
“A license for the shipment of NXT:2050i and NXT:2100i lithography systems in 2023 has recently been partially revoked, impacting a small number of customers in China,” it said.
ASML dominates the global market for lithography systems, which use lasers to help create chip circuitry.
Its shares dipped in early trade yesterday.
Asked about the move, foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin urged the Netherlands “to be impartial, respect market principles and the law, take practical actions to protect the common interests of both countries and their companies and maintain the stability of international supply chains.”
ASML did not specify which customers were due to receive the machines, but its customers in China include Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp (0981) and Hua Hong (1347), according to company disclosures.
In recent years, China has been ASML’s third-largest market after Taiwan and South Korea, but it was the biggest in the third quarter of 2023, accounting for 46 percent of the company’s sales.
In 2023, the United States announced rules giving Washington the right to restrict the export of ASML’s “Twinscan NXT1930Di” machine if it contains any US parts.
Soon after, several Dutch lawmakers challenged the Netherlands’ trade minister over whether the United States had acted correctly in unilaterally imposing rules regulating the export to China of another ASML chipmaking machine.
ASML has also cancelled shipments of some of its machines to China at the request of the Biden administration, weeks before export bans on the high-end chipmaking equipment came into effect, insiders said.
Meanwhile, this week’s earthquake in Japan could impact global chip supply. Referring to historical data, the major earthquake in the country led to price rises of semiconductors, as factories of the chipmakers were damaged.
Toshiba said its local subsidiary Kaga Toshiba Electronics has stopped semiconductor production at its plant in Ishikawa to gauge the quake’s impact on its facilities.
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