A chip manufacturing machine Photo: VCG

China Semiconductor Industry Association (CSIA) said on Thursday that it opposes the US' arbitrary move on its chip technology ban against China with regard to new export control measures announced by the US Department of Commerce last week.

The association said it hopes the US government rectifies its wrongdoings in a timely manner and returns to the international trade negotiation mechanism under the World Semiconductor Council and the Government/Authorities Meeting on Semiconductors to communicate thoroughly, exchange their concerns effectively and work out differences to reach consensus.

In a statement posted on its website, CSIA said the arbitrary move by the US Department of Commerce is creating disruption throughout international trade and expressed its deep concerns that the concept of national security is being abused to support a discriminative trade policy. Such unilateral policy will only further damage the global semiconductor supply chain, it said. 

More importantly, the industry association added, the new US move will foster an atmosphere of uncertainty and bring a huge negative impact to the mutual trust and cooperative spirit forged by global semiconductor industry players over the past decades.

The CSIA said its hope that the US would rectify its measures was raised in light of interest of the global semiconductor industry, and the downstream industries that relied on the development of this sector, as well as the wellbeing of millions of workers in the semiconductor industry.

The move came just days after Washington issued what said to be the "harshest" export ban on chip technology in another attempt to thwart China's semiconductor development last week.

The US government on Friday announced a broad set of technology export controls, including a ban on shipments of certain semiconductors made anywhere in the world with US equipment to China, further intensifying its so-called tech decoupling push and threatening to wreak havoc in the highly globalized chip supply chain.

The CSIA statement came as a number of US suppliers such as US chip toolmaker KLA Corp reportedly suspending of their services to Chinese clients and amid a rout of US semiconductor shares.

Intel, one of the leading US chip companies, is reportedly planning its biggest round of layoffs since 2016, with thousands of workers set to be let go by end of the month and some divisions losing up to 20 percent of their headcount. 

Key players from South Korea, including Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, reportedly managed to secure a one-year waiver on chip gear in China, reflecting the difficulties created by the US' 'harshest' ban.

SK Hynix confirmed reports with the Global Times in a statement on Wednesday.