Beijing’s top trade negotiator met the head of Nvidia’s global business operations on Monday, ahead of an expected escalation of US restrictions on China’s semiconductor industry, which reportedly could come as soon as this week.
Wang Shouwen, the vice commerce minister who was a key member of China’s trade negotiation team during Donald Trump’s first term as US president, spoke with Nvidia’s Jay Puri, an executive vice-president of worldwide field operations, according to a statement published by the ministry. It did not elaborate on the details of the meeting or the topics discussed.
The meeting comes amid an expectation that the outgoing administration of US President Joe Biden will soon impose another round of export restrictions on China. The new regulations could add up to 200 Chinese chip companies to a trade blacklist, Reuters reported on Friday, citing an email the US Chamber of Commerce sent to its members. Further US curbs on shipments of high-bandwidth memory chips to China are expected to be unveiled next month, the report said.
Washington has not confirmed the new sanctions, but China’s foreign ministry responded to the reports on Monday at its regular press conference, saying the country will take resolute measures to safeguard national business interests.
Nvidia, the world’s leading artificial intelligence (AI) chip designer, is not allowed to sell its most advanced products to China. But Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said on Saturday that the company will maintain its presence in mainland China despite rising geopolitical tensions.
Huang was speaking at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, where he received an honorary doctorate. He also said that China has unique strengths in capitalising on AI and industry trends that are upending everything from medicine to robotics.
As Nvidia is unable to sell its most coveted AI chips to Chinese clients, the supply chain has started to adjust. Hong Kong computer electronics manufacturer PC Partner Group, a large assembler of graphics cards for Nvidia’s chips, has become the latest company to scale back from mainland China amid intensifying geopolitical pressure in the tech industry.