Startups & Funding

Dutch minister opposes new US bill targeting ASML chip sales to China

ASML CEO warns 19% of revenue at risk from expanded export controls.

Deep Dive

Dutch Trade Minister Sjoerd Sjoerdsma traveled to Washington this week to meet with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and lawmakers, aiming to block the MATCH Act — a bill that would prohibit Chinese chipmakers from accessing Western semiconductor equipment. The legislation targets ASML, the Netherlands-based company that is Europe’s most valuable and the world’s only producer of cutting-edge lithography machines required to manufacture advanced AI chips. China currently represents 19% of ASML’s net system sales.

The MATCH Act goes further than existing export controls by banning sales of ASML’s deep ultraviolet immersion (DUV) machines to China, on top of the long-standing prohibition on its most advanced extreme ultraviolet (EUV) tools. ASML CEO Christophe Fouquet noted in May that what China currently buys are older-generation DUV tools shipped about a decade ago. The bill, introduced in April, has not yet faced a House or Senate vote. Analysts suggest it would likely need to be folded into a larger legislative package to pass. The outcome will shape global semiconductor supply chains and ASML's revenue outlook.

Key Points
  • Dutch Trade Minister Sjoerdsma visited Washington to oppose the MATCH Act, which would bar Chinese chipmakers from Western semiconductor equipment.
  • ASML, the sole maker of advanced lithography machines for AI chips, sees 19% of net system sales from China.
  • The bill would extend export bans to ASML’s older deep ultraviolet immersion tools, currently sold to China, beyond existing EUV restrictions.

Why It Matters

Chip export controls could cripple ASML’s revenue and reshape global semiconductor supply chains.

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