The U.S. government removes Chinese chip giant AMEC from the main blacklist.
AMEC and IDG Capital have been excluded from the list in the United States.
Advanced Micro-Fabrication Equipment (AMEC), a Chinese tool manufacturer, has been removed from the U.S. Department of Defense's list of concerning companies, known as "Chinese Military Companies operating in the US." Despite this removal, AMEC still appears on the Department of Commerce's Entity List, where it continues to face restrictions and sanctions.
The news of AMEC's removal was confirmed in a Federal Register publication on December 13, approximately one year after its original inclusion. During 2024, the company's presence on that list meant that the Department of Defense was prohibited from acquiring products from AMEC, in addition to other impediments imposed on the company. This also included restrictions that prevented AMEC from purchasing technologies developed in the U.S.
As AMEC remains on the Entity List, its suppliers still need to obtain an export license to sell tools and materials to the firm, a process that can be complicated. Additionally, the Chinese investment firm IDG Capital was also removed from the list, although the Department of Defense did not specify the reasons for this decision.
In early 2024, AMEC had filed a lawsuit in the U.S. against the Department of Defense due to its inclusion on that initial list. This change in the situation comes shortly after the U.S. added more companies to its restriction list. A spokesperson for China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Lin Jian, criticized the U.S. measures, calling them harmful to global trade, and mentioned that his country was evaluating possible countermeasures.
The situation is further complicated by the arrival of the elected President Trump, creating uncertainty about the permanence of previous restrictions.
