Chip tech leader ASML sales jump despite US-China spat

Chip tech leader ASML sales jump despite US-China spat
by AFP Staff Writers
The Hague (AFP) July 19, 2023

Dutch chip-making machine supplier ASML reported Wednesday a jump in second-quarter sales, shrugging off a tech war over semiconductors between the United States and China.

ASML, which produces the lithography equipment that makes semiconductors, said turnover reached 6.9 billion euros ($7.8 billion) in the April-to-June period, up from 6.7 billion euros in the first three months of the year.

Net profit totalled 1.9 billion euros, slightly lower than in the previous quarter.

ASML chief executive Peter Wennink said customers across different markets "are currently more cautious due to continued macro-economic uncertainties" and "expect a later recovery of their markets".

Wennink said the company expects sales to reach between 6.5 billion to 7.0 billion euros in the third quarter.

The Netherlands announced last month that export restrictions on technology to make semiconductors -- adopted in March under pressure from the United States and sharply criticised by China -- will enter into force in September.

The Netherlands is Europe's premier maker of the machines that produce semiconductors, which are used in everything from smartphones to cars and weapons.

The Dutch government said companies producing cutting-edged equipment to manufacture semiconductors would need to obtain permission before exporting their products to foreign clients as of September 1.

ASML said that its top-of-the line extreme ultraviolet (EUV) technology, which can etch semiconductors of just two nanometres in width, was already under export controls.

The permit requirement will also apply to exports of newer technology, deep ultraviolet (DUV) lithography systems, which makes circuits as small as tiny as seven nanometres.

The company said it expects the measures would have only a limited effect on its business.

China slammed the Dutch export restrictions in March, calling the decision the result of "bullying and hegemony" by the West.

The export curb was announced less than two months after Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte discussed the issue with US President Joe Biden during a visit to Washington.

The United States adopted similar export restrictions in 2022.

The Chinese government has set a strategic goal of becoming 70 percent self-sufficient in semiconductors in 2025.

Earlier this month, China said it would impose export controls on gallium and germanium -- two rare metals essential for the manufacture of semiconductors -- citing security concerns.