Japan said on Friday it will restrict exports of 23 types of semiconductor manufacturing equipment, aligning its technology trade controls with a US push to curb China's ability to make advanced chips.
Japan, home to major chip equipment makers such as Nikon Corp (7731.T) and Tokyo Electron Ltd (8035.T), did not specify China as the target of the restrictions, saying manufacturers would need to seek export permission for all regions.
"We are fulfilling our responsibility as a technological nation to contribute to international peace and stability," Minister for Economy, Trade and Industry Yasutoshi Nishimura told a news conference.
Japan wants to stop its advanced technology being used for military purposes and does not have a specific country in mind, he said.
But the decision, coming ahead of a weekend visit to Beijing by Japanese Minister for Foreign Affairs Yoshimasa Hayashi, will be seen as a major win for the US, which in October announced sweeping restrictions on access to chipmaking technology to slow China's technological and military advances.
"Politicizing, instrumentalizing and weaponizing economic and technological issues, and artificially disrupting the stability of global production and supply chains will only harm others and harm themselves," Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said at a briefing when asked about Japan's new export rules.
The US needs the cooperation of industry heavyweights Japan and the Netherlands for its measures to be effective and to ensure its companies do not face a competitive disadvantage.
Those two countries in January agreed to join the US in restricting exports to China of equipment that could be used to manufacture sub-14 nanometer chips, but did not announce the pact to avoid provoking China, sources previously told Reuters.
A nanometer, or one-billionth of a meter, refers to a semiconductor industry technology, with fewer nanometers generally meaning more advanced chips.
The Netherlands this month said it planned to restrict the export of chipmaking equipment, such as from ASML Holding NV (ASML.AS) which dominates the market for lithography systems used to create chips' minute circuitry.
China has accused the US of being a "tech hegemony" and urged the Netherlands not to follow it.
Reuters