With the Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090 graphics card slated for release early next year, major graphics processing unit manufacturer PC Partner has relocated from Hong Kong to Singapore while HKEPC reports the manufacturer is also shifting its production facilities to Indonesia, although the company denies this.
The new company, PC Partner Singapore PTE Ltd, has listed on the Singapore SGX stock exchange.
This shift comes as The US Department of Commerce prepares to enact high-tech export controls on Chinese trade and companies domiciled within its shores.
Export controls target advanced chips
The new export restrictions will apply to fabrication tools that can be used to make chips with advanced technology, including gate-all-around transistors (GAA FETs) and quantum computing applications.
"Today's action ensures our national export controls keep step with rapidly evolving technologies and are more effective when we work in concert with international partners," said Alan Estevez, under-secretary for the Bureau of Industry and Security.
"Aligning our controls on quantum and other advanced technologies makes it significantly more difficult for our adversaries to develop and deploy these technologies in ways that threaten our collective security."
Exporting quantum computing technologies from the US now requires a licence, with applications reviewed on a case-by-case basis.
China’s semiconductor industry on back foot
Reuters reports that Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said efforts by the US to "coerce other countries into suppressing China's semiconductor industry" undermines global trade and hurts all parties, when asked about the export control package.
According to the Foreign Policy Research Institute, the export controls have already had an effect.
“Since the rollout of the export controls, China’s semiconductor industry has taken a serious blow. Chinese semiconductor output plummeted 17% in early 2023,” Catherine Tan writes.
“Furthermore, the US restrictions on Chinese access to Nvidia’s A100 and H100 chips and Dutch firm ASML’s high-tech lithography machines, which are essential for making advanced chips, seriously damage China’s chip-making capabilities.
“Experts estimate that China’s semiconductor capacities are anywhere from five to 10 years behind.”
The report warns that the sanctions are likely to encourage China to create an independent semiconductor supply chain, which could compel Chinese companies to develop domestic alternatives to US technology.
Forcing China to innovate in entirely new ways may lead to splits in technology innovation pathways, potentially isolating the US in the technological equivalent of “de-dollarisation”.
Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Lin Jian told Reuters that China hopes relevant countries would resist U.S. efforts and safeguard their long-term interests.
"Containment and suppression cannot stop China's development but will only enhance China's determination and ability to develop its scientific and technological self-reliance," he said.