China announced on Tuesday, December 3, that it was blocking its exports of certain strategic metals to the United States, the day after new American restrictions against it, in an acceleration of the technological war between the two leading powers on the planet. The Chinese Ministry of Commerce, accusing Washington of having “politicized trade and technology issues”explains in a press release that it will no longer issue export licenses for gallium, germanium, antimony and other materials to the United States as long as they can have dual civil and military use.
China is the leading producer of these metals known as “rare earths” which are used in the production of high-tech products, including microchips, solar panels and satellites. She announced at the same time that deliveries of graphite, used in particular in batteries, will be subject to strict examination.
The same day, four official industry associations representing the automobile, semiconductor and Internet sectors asked Chinese companies to be cautious in purchasing American chips and to explore alternatives, Chinese or from third countries. “American chips in automobiles are no longer reliable or safe”says a press release.
Blacklist
A few weeks before the inauguration, on January 20, of Donald Trump as American president, China is showing that it does not hesitate to outbid in the face of increasing restrictions put in place in the United States and decoupling efforts, especially in sensitive sectors. On Monday, the United States blacklisted 140 Chinese companies accused of acting for the interests of the Chinese government, with a focus on microchips and the tools to produce them. Washington says it wants “Hinder China’s ability to acquire and produce the technologies necessary for its military modernization”.
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The American administration seemed particularly concerned in October to note that, despite the ban on exporting latest generation chips to China imposed on Taiwanese semiconductor giant TSMC, a subcontractor of Apple and the leader in artificial intelligence Nvidia, the Chinese telecoms champion Huawei has managed to obtain it. The United States also notes that Huawei and the Chinese foundries it uses are rapidly moving upmarket, despite the obstacles.
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