Netherlands Blocks ASML Exports of Some Chip-Making Equipment to China

By Sherry Qin

Netherlands has blocked chip-equipment manufacturer ASML's exports to China of some lithography systems, which are essential to making advanced microprocessors, in a partial license revocation following U.S. export restrictions.

The Netherlands-based company said Monday that the Dutch government recently partially revoked an export license for shipping the NXT:2050i and NXT:2100i lithography systems to China in 2023.

Dutch semiconductor companies have had to seek government permission since September before they can sell some advanced types of chip-making equipment abroad, the Dutch government said in June. The rule came after national-security officials from the Netherlands, Japan and the U.S. reached an agreement to start restricting such exports, aiming at limiting China's access to advanced semiconductor technologies.

The chip-equipment maker had previously said it could ship restricted chip-making equipment to China until the end of 2023 despite the rule, according to media reports.

ASML specializes in photolithography, the process of using light to print on photosensitive surfaces, a process key to chip makers.

"We do not expect the current revocation of our export license or the latest U.S. export control restrictions to have a material impact on our financial outlook for 2023," the company said in a statement.

Write to Sherry Qin at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

January 01, 2024 23:04 ET (04:04 GMT)

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