Photo: iStock
Eurasia
08/07/2023 07:00
Ursula von der Leyen toured on Friday the Interuniversity Microelectronics Centre (IMEC), based in Leuven, Belgium, promoting the European Chips Act, a new legislative initiative to drastically ramp up the bloc's domestic production of semiconductors and reach 20% of the global market share by 2030, Euronews reported.
"Chips are essential for our green and digital transitions, and for our economies. Our economy would not function without chips," said Von der Leyen, who did not take any questions from the press during her visit to IMEC, avoided the topic of China's recent announcement altogether during her public remarks.
On Monday, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce and the General Administration of Customs issued a joint statement announcing a new regulation on exports of two critical minerals, with effect from August 1. “In order to safeguard national security and interests, with the approval of the State Council, it is decided to implement export controls on items related to gallium and germanium,” it said, according to Politico.
“China needs to regulate its own mineral industry so as to develop it in a healthier way, instead of polluting itself only for the world’s biggest mine holder to save it as a ‘strategic resource’,” China Daily reacted to the announcement.
“China’s decision to restrict critical mineral exports will hit key sectors in the European Union’s effort to decarbonize its economy,” Bloomberg pointed out. The news site reminded that China is the largest global producer of the two minerals, gallium and germanium, which will be subject to export restrictions next month and that are crucial to the semiconductor, telecommunications and electric-vehicle industries. The EU gets 71% of its gallium from China and 45% of its germanium.
