China Rushes to Stockpile US Chips Ahead of Trump’s Escalating Sanctions

In response to potential new U.S. technology restrictions, China has boosted its integrated circuit imports from the U.S. by 60%. What could be the global impact of this increase on the tech sector?

China Ramps Up Hoarding of American Semiconductors

In response to potential sanctions from the newly elected U.S. President Donald Trump, China has dramatically accelerated its efforts to stockpile American microprocessors.

Growing Chinese Interest in American Semiconductors
Recent customs data released on Wednesday shows that Beijing’s demand for these critical electronic components has surged. Purchases peaked at $1.11 billion in October, marking a 60% increase from the same period last year.

Steady Increase in Imports

Throughout the first ten months of the year, China imported $9.61 billion worth of microprocessors from the United States, up 42.5% from the previous year. Since June, China’s monthly semiconductor purchases from the world’s largest economy have consistently exceeded one billion dollars.

“China has boosted imports of chips and chip-making equipment in anticipation of tougher U.S. sanctions on semiconductors,” stated Liang Yan, an economics professor at Willamette University in Oregon, USA.

China’s Struggles to Develop More Advanced Chips

Moreover, China continues to face challenges in developing more advanced chips. According to a Bloomberg report released Tuesday, tech giant Huawei Technologies still relies on 7-nanometer architecture for its upcoming Ascend processors due to U.S. technological restrictions preventing access to more advanced lithography machines.
Of the nine categories of microprocessors imported from the United States, China primarily focuses on purchasing CPU-based processors and controllers, as well as chips designed for storage and signal amplification.