US to blacklist more Chinese firms – Bloomberg

The administration of US President Joe Biden plans to place major chipmaker Yangtze Memory Technologies (YMTC) and over 30 other Chinese firms on a trade blacklist that would prevent them from buying certain American components, Bloomberg reported on Tuesday.

Sources told the outlet that the US Department of Commerce will add the firms to a so-called Entity List as early as this week.

According to the report, companies on this list are barred from buying technology from US suppliers unless they obtain a special export license. Washington has already used similar restrictions on Chinese tech giant Huawei and other entities, citing risks to national security.

In response, Beijing slammed Washington’s actions, saying they’ve disrupted supply chains. The US has “politicized and weaponized economic cooperation,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told reporters on Wednesday, promising to take steps to protect the rights of the affected companies.

Tensions between the US and China, the world’s two largest economies, have been on the rise as they compete for domination in key technologies, including semiconductors. In October, the Biden administration unveiled a sweeping set of restrictions on China’s ability to buy semiconductors and chip-making equipment, putting YMTC and other companies on a list for further scrutiny at the time.

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