Catenaa, Tuesday, October 14, 2025- US lawmakers are calling for expanded restrictions on sales of semiconductor manufacturing tools to China after a congressional investigation found Chinese firms purchased $38 billion of advanced equipment last year.
The bipartisan report highlighted that inconsistencies in export rules from the US, Japan, and the Netherlands allowed non-US manufacturers to sell gear to Chinese companies that US firms could not.
The purchases, primarily from Applied Materials, Lam Research, KLA, ASML, and Tokyo Electron, represented a 66% increase from 2022 and accounted for nearly 39% of total sales by the top suppliers.
Lawmakers warned that these sales could enhance China’s competitiveness in producing semiconductors, with potential implications for human rights, democratic values, and military modernization.
The report recommends broader bans beyond targeted restrictions on specific Chinese chipmakers, including tighter controls on components that could help China develop its own chipmaking tools.
The committee specifically highlighted SwaySure Technology, Shenzhen Pengxinxu Technology, and SiEn Integrated Circuits as security concerns due to alleged connections to Huawei’s secret network.
Industry leaders acknowledged changes in China sales, citing declining shipments this year due to new regulations and closer coordination between the US and Japanese governments.
Analysts note that the semiconductor sector is now a critical battleground in the broader US-China technology competition, encompassing AI, military applications, and advanced data centers.
