【Text by Observers Network, Qi Qian】
Several weeks ago, the Dutch government forcibly took over Nexperia, a Chinese-owned semiconductor company, which almost overturned the global automotive supply chain. The United States and the Netherlands have long cooperated closely in the field of chip industry export control. According to the timing and legal documents, this move is likely to be influenced by the United States.
According to a report by the U.S. "Wall Street Journal", on October 31 local time, several sources revealed that the White House will announce that Nexperia is about to resume chip shipments.
Reuters and Bloomberg also reported this news. As of now, the White House has not immediately responded to the request for comment.
It is worth noting that the day before, on the 30th, Nexperia's parent company, China's leading semiconductor enterprise, Wenxi Technology, stated that any agreement regarding resuming shipments from China must include the condition of restoring the position of its former chief executive officer.
The spokesperson of Wenxi Technology issued a statement, saying that it is urging the Dutch government to change its position and eliminate false accusations of technology theft. The statement pointed out that the Dutch side's actions are difficult to avoid drawing the conclusion that they see the former CEO of Nexperia as a "soft target" and have packaged his suspension as a "victory".
The spokesperson added that "regaining full control and ownership" is a necessary condition for easing tensions and restoring stability.
Nexperia's chips are crucial to the global automotive industry Company website
Bloomberg said that if Nexperia resumes shipments, it may ease concerns of the U.S. and Europe about chip shipments, as Nexperia's chips are crucial to the global automotive industry, and shipment interruptions threaten car production around the world.
The "Wall Street Journal" mentioned that automakers and suppliers are still unsure whether this move can truly solve the problem.
The report mentioned that early on the 31st, the deadlock at Nexperia seemed to escalate. A letter from Nexperia to its customers showed that Nexperia had suspended the supply of wafers to its Chinese factory. Reuters believes this will further jeopardize automobile production in Europe and other regions.
Lately, China's leading semiconductor enterprise Wenxi Technology has encountered major regulatory challenges abroad. Its core asset in the Netherlands, Nexperia, was frozen for one year starting from September 30 due to instructions from the Dutch government.
The Netherlands caused a big trouble: seizing a Chinese-invested company led to supply disruptions, causing a "big earthquake" in the global automotive supply chain, with all European, American and Japanese car manufacturers affected.
The "Wall Street Journal" cited data indicating that Nexperia's revenue last year was approximately $2 billion, with about 60% coming from automotive applications. The company holds a significant market share in basic chips required for hundreds of automotive components. Industry executives and analysts said this makes it complicated for European and American automakers to find sufficient alternative supplies.
Our multiple departments responded, emphasizing that China firmly opposes the Dutch government's generalization of the concept of national security and direct intervention in corporate internal affairs through administrative means. The Dutch government's action not only violates the spirit of contract and market principles, but will also severely damage the business environment in the Netherlands, harming both sides.
From the timing point of view, these series of operations are hard to avoid suspicion of being a carefully planned "plunder": the United States and the Netherlands have long cooperated closely in the field of chip industry export control. Just a day before the Dutch government took action, on September 29 local time, the U.S. government had just issued an export control penetration rule, adding the same level of export control to the subsidiary of Wenxi Technology that is listed on the "Entity List" and owns more than 50% of shares.
The UK's Financial Times also noted that the Dutch government's action "followed closely behind the U.S." and Bloomberg, an American media outlet, further pointed out that the Trump administration had recently expanded the scope of sanctions, highlighting the increasingly strict scrutiny faced by Chinese enterprises in sensitive industries.
On October 14, court documents released by the Amsterdam Court of Appeal showed that as early as June this year, U.S. officials had already made their position clear to the Netherlands - if Nexperia wanted to obtain exemption from the new changes in the U.S. "Entity List," its Chinese CEO "must be replaced".
For several weeks, automakers around the world have been preparing for reduced production or even complete shutdowns.
The European automotive industry has been working around the clock to prevent production interruptions. The European Automobile Manufacturers Association recently warned that the European automotive industry faces an "imminent disruption". The association's director general said, "The industry is consuming reserve inventories, but supplies are rapidly decreasing. A survey this week shows that some companies are about to stop production. Although there are alternative suppliers, increasing the required additional capacity takes months."
On the evening of the 30th, French automaker Stellantis said that the company had established a "war room" to monitor the situation.
Japanese automaker Nissan said that their current chip inventory can only last until the first week of November.
Last week, the largest auto supplier association in the United States warned that the U.S. automotive industry is two to four weeks away from a shutdown. Ford Motor Company's CEO warned that this is a "industry-wide issue" that requires a political solution.
On October 21, Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao pointed out that regarding the Nexperia issue, China firmly opposes the generalization of the "national security" concept, hopes that the EU will play an important constructive role, urges the Dutch government to adhere to the spirit of contract and market principles, and proposes a proper solution as soon as possible from the perspective of maintaining the safety and stability of the global supply chain.
This article is an exclusive work of Observers Network. Without permission, it cannot be reprinted.
Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7567559975405470208/
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