Biden declares economic war on the Chinese semiconductor industry

In a post back in August, I offered some thoughts on whether and how the U.S. could sanction China in the event of a conflict over Taiwan. My conclusion was this: Because financial sanctions would have huge costs for the U.S. and its allies and a relatively muted long-term impact on China…I expect us to use a different, more targeted kind of sanctions [in a Taiwan conflict]: Export controls. So what does China import a lot of, that would be crucial in any war situation? Computer chips, fuel, and raw materials…[C]omputer chips are essential for everything military. And although China is trying hard to ramp up domestic production, it has a long way to go. So I have to say that I was fairly surprised to see Biden go ahead and just do this, without even threatening it in advance or waiting to use it as a bargaining chip. This week, the administration implemented sweeping export controls on China’s entire chip sector. There are three main changes: 1. A ban on the export to China of speciali

In a post back in August, I offered some thoughts on whether and how the U.S. could sanction China in the event of a conflict over Taiwan. My conclusion was this: Because financial sanctions would have huge costs for the U.S. and its allies and a relatively muted long-term impact on China…I expect us to use a different, more targeted kind of sanctions [in a Taiwan conflict]: Export controls. So what does China import a lot of, that would be crucial in any war situation? Computer chips, fuel, and raw materials…[C]omputer chips are essential for everything military. And although China is trying