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ASML is too convenient a target for the US
ASML shouldn’t be singled out as the only semiconductor company to be restricted. If the US wants to cut off China, at the very least, ban American technology too.
Finally, ASML finds itself in the eye of a geopolitical battle. It was just a matter of time, once the Trump administration started to put the squeeze on China. The US is hell-bent on stopping, or at the very least slowing down, the Chinese advance on the world stage. Everything was fine as long as China was manufacturing the easy stuff, but now that it starts posing a threat – economically, technologically and therefore ultimately militarily – to the American hegemony, the fight is on.
According to the reports, initially by Nikkei Asian Review and more recently by Reuters, US pressure led the Dutch government to withhold the license required for ASML to ship an EUV scanner to a Chinese customer. This is almost certainly SMIC, China’s most advanced semiconductor company. At this point, the foundry has no need for EUV in manufacturing. But, the same way Intel, TSMC and Samsung had machines to play with years before they even considered moving EUV into production, SMIC obviously will require some time to learn the tricks of the trade.