Amidst the current US restrictions that prohibit Chinese firms from buying advanced chip-making equipment from US companies, there seems to be a shift to other markets. China’s imports of lithography systems from the Netherlands increased tenfold year-on-year last month. China imported 16 units of the machine with a total value of $762.7 million. The bulk of imports of lithography systems in November came from the Netherlands and Japan.
China’s semiconductor manufacturers are getting alternative critical fabrication equipment from markets outside the US in an increasing manner. It also indicates that Chinese firms are not yet completely cut off from buying certain advanced equipment for chip-making. In October, China imported 21 lithography systems valued at $672.5 million, while 16 systems were imported in November at a higher sum of $762.7 million. This means that Chinese firms are getting their hands on more advanced and expensive projection systems. The US has been unrelenting in trying to restrict other countries from also selling advanced equipment to Chinese firms but it is yet to fully stop the inflow.
The Netherlands is home to ASML a leading manufacturer of lithography machines. The country is the biggest exporter of lithography equipment used to make the most advanced chips, followed by Japan. The Netherlands and Japan accounted for the bulk of imports by China for lithography equipment in November 2023. China is still far off the top in terms of technology for advanced lithography systems. It has failed to narrow the gap even with massive investments by the government. It is estimated that less than 5% of lithography systems used in Chinese fabs were made in China as of 2021.
There might be more restrictions ahead, however. Both the Netherlands and Japan have released new guidelines and export controls on chip-making equipment. The two countries acceded to the US request in January. There are new restrictions activated by the US Commerce Department targeting China. The US abolished the so-called de minimis rule which applied to certain deep ultraviolet (DUV) equipment. The new rule kicked in last month and restricts ASML from shipping advanced immersion DUV lithography systems to a few fabs involved in advanced semiconductor manufacturing in China. The spike in imports may be unconnected with the new restrictions, as the equipment shipped in November received their licenses in 2022 or early 2023.
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