Catenaa, Saturday, January 17, 2026- Suppliers of parts for Nvidia H200 have paused production after Chinese customs officials blocked shipments of the newly approved AI processors from entering China.
The Financial Times reported on Friday that Nvidia had expected more than 1 million orders from Chinese clients, adding that its suppliers had been operating around the clock to prepare for shipping as early as March.
Chinese customs authorities this week told customs agents that Nvidia’s H200 chips are not permitted to enter the country, Reuters has reported.
Sources have also said government officials summoned domestic tech firms to warn them against buying the chips unless necessary.
The sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter, said authorities had not provided any reasons for their directives and had not given any indication whether this constitutes a formal ban or a temporary measure.
One Chinese seller of Nvidia AI servers said many local customers had cancelled orders for the H200. Instead, they have switched to the more advanced B200 and B300, which are banned for export into China by Washington, leading to an active black market for the chips.
The H200, Nvidia’s second most powerful AI chip, is one of the biggest flashpoints in current US-Sino relations.
Though there is strong demand from Chinese firms, it remains unclear whether Beijing wants to ban it outright so that domestic chip companies can flourish, or is still chewing over restrictions, or could use those measures as a bargaining tactic in talks with Washington
