US considers crackdown on memory chip makers in China

Memory chips by South Korean semiconductor supplier SK Hynix are seen on a circuit board of a computer. The crackdown, if approved, would involve barring the shipment of US chipmaking equipment to factories in China that manufacture advanced NAND chips. — Reuters

WASHINGTON: The United States is considering limiting shipments of American chipmaking equipment to memory chip makers in China including Yangtze Memory Technologies Co Ltd (YMTC), according to four people familiar with the matter, part of a bid to halt China's semiconductor sector advances and protect US companies.

If US President Joe Biden's administration proceeds with the move, it could also hurt South Korean memory chip juggernauts Samsung Electronics Co Ltd and SK Hynix Inc, the sources said, speaking on condition of anonymity. Samsung has two big factories in China while SK Hynix Inc is buying Intel Corp's NAND flash memory chips manufacturing business in China.