Yesterday (December 10), Reuters reported that DJI and Autel Robotics companies (both based in China) may be banned from selling new unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in the US market under the military bill. Expected to be voted on by the US House of Representatives this weekend. Last September, the US House of Representatives voted to ban DJI’s new UAV lines from operating in the US. The US Department of Commerce is also considering whether to impose restrictions on other types of Chinese UAVs operating in the US.
“An eye for an eye”
The above information about DJI and Autel Robotics is the latest development surrounding the escalating trade war between the US and China, especially in the field of technology in general and the semiconductor industry in particular.
NVIDIA has just been notified by China to conduct an investigation
Right at the beginning of this week, on December 9, China announced that it had opened an investigation into NVIDIA, the leading US chip manufacturer today. The investigation was conducted to clarify whether NVIDIA violated China’s antitrust laws. However, Chinese authorities did not detail how the group may have violated China’s anti-monopoly laws. The move to investigate NVIDIA is seen as Beijing’s shot in retaliation for Washington’s latest restrictions on the Chinese chip sector.
Last week, four Chinese industry associations issued a rare response saying that the country’s businesses are wary of buying US chips because of the risk of “no longer being safe”. Accordingly, Chinese businesses should buy domestic chips.
On the contrary, also last week, Washington launched a new campaign to punish China’s semiconductor industry by restricting US businesses from exporting to 140 Chinese companies, including equipment manufacturers. chipped. Immediately after Washington’s announcement, Beijing banned exports to the US of important minerals such as gallium, germanium and antimony. These are necessary materials that the US depends on China to develop the semiconductor industry.
On December 1, international media reported that China had just approved a list of 700 items subject to export restrictions. These include many items that the US desperately needs to develop important products, especially technology. Typically this list includes rare earths and some basic technology components that the US has long relied on for supplies from China. The above list of export restrictions takes effect from December 1. Since August 2023, China has imposed export restrictions on gallium and germanium. In particular, gallium is used in compound semiconductors, often used to improve transmission speed and increase radar efficiency.
Race to strengthen position
Reply Adolescent yesterday (December 10) surrounding China’s move against NVIDIA, Ms. Bonnie S.Glaser (Director of the Indo-Pacific Program, German Marshall Fund in the US) commented: “The Chinese government first has now used legal investigations targeting foreign businesses to respond to governments. The move to investigate NVIDIA may be one of the steps Beijing is taking to retaliate against Washington’s tightening export controls for the sale of chips to China”.
Similarly, Professor Stephen Robert Nagy (International Christian University – Japan, scholar at the Japanese Institute of International Affairs) assessed: “The relationship between the two sides is entering the phase of Beijing’s response. Washington’s measures that undermine China’s industrial and technological development will continue to carry out investigations like the one targeting NVIDIA further between the two sides in the near future, especially after When Donald Trump takes office as US president, the two sides are trying to strengthen their position for strategic competition as well as trade negotiations. He will also oppose China in terms of trade policy and inequality.
TikTok asked for “favor” from the US court
Sheet South China Morning Post reported that TikTok and its Chinese parent company ByteDance on December 9 filed a request for a federal appeals court to temporarily block a law that could lead to a US ban on the popular short video app next month while awaiting consideration by the US Supreme Court.
