The US Commerce Secretary affirmed that the US is working closely with allies to address “ economic coercion.” Speaking at a press conference following a meeting of trade ministers during the Indo- Pacific Economic Framework negotiations, Ms. Raimondo stated that the US “firmly opposes” China’s actions against Micron.
According to Ms. Raimondo, Beijing targeted "an American company without any factual basis" and viewed this as "economic coercion," which it "will not tolerate or believe will succeed."
On May 21, China's cybersecurity regulator announced that Micron, the largest memory chip manufacturer in the US, failed a cybersecurity review and would ban critical infrastructure operators from purchasing its products. This fueled speculation that Micron would suffer a significant drop in revenue. According to analyst Mark Li of Sanford C. Bernstein, in the worst-case scenario, Micron could lose approximately 11% of its revenue due to the ban.
The decision was made a day after G7 leaders agreed on measures to counter China's " challenges related to non-market behavior."
Ms. Raimondo also raised the issue of Micron in a previous meeting with Chinese Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao.
Beijing launched an investigation into Micron in March after the U.S. signed agreements with Japan and the Netherlands – two of the world's largest suppliers of chip manufacturing tools – to restrict exports to China. Much of Micron's manufacturing is located outside mainland China, although it has module and component assembly lines and a testing plant in Xi'an. Customers in China and Hong Kong accounted for 16% of Micron's 2022 revenue.
The American chipmaker has spoken out about the risks from the US-China technology conflict, including increasing competition from its Chinese rival. The company even warned in its report that it could be banned from the world's largest market.
(According to Reuters)
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