Beijing announced on Sunday that it had granted exemptions to certain semiconductor exports, easing tensions with the Netherlands over control of Netherlands-based company Nexperia.
A spokesman for the Ministry of Commerce said of previously restricted semiconductor exports that “China has taken practical measures to exempt qualifying exports for civilian purposes.”
The announcement follows a social media post by European Commission trade chief Maroš Šefčovič on Saturday, which said the EU had reached an agreement with China’s commerce ministry to resume semiconductor flows disrupted by the Nexperia crisis.
A spokesperson for the Chinese ministry added: “I would like to emphasize that we welcome the continued influence of the European side and call on the Netherlands to correct its wrong practices as soon as possible.”
The latest signs of a thaw between Beijing and The Hague over semiconductor controls that have grown in recent months and jittery mainland automakers prompted Wingtech Technology, the Shanghai-listed parent of Dutch chipmaker Nexperia, to extend last week’s rally.
The company closed up 3.02% after hitting an intraday peak of 6% by the close of trading in Shanghai on Monday.
This follows a sharp jump on Friday, November 7, when the stock rose a whopping 9.7%.
A battle for control of a little-known chipmaker has threatened global auto manufacturing by suffocating the semiconductor supply chain.
Nexperia makes semiconductors such as switches and logic chips, including those that control things like airbag sensors, window controls and power controls in cars.
Headquartered in Nijmegen, the Netherlands, the company is a subsidiary of Wingtech Technology, which is partly owned by the Chinese government.
in 2025 The Hague ruled against Nexperia in late September and October, deciding that the company’s management and supply continuity risks were a serious enough threat to European demand for chip manufacturing.
Using a rarely used law on the availability of goods, the government has given itself a veto over major Nexperia decisions, citing national security concerns, including a risk to critical chip expertise, and claims that operations in the Netherlands and the EU could be compromised or moved abroad. Later, the court suspended the CEO of Nexperia.
In response, China froze exports of the chips, and automakers feared factory shutdowns because many of these old chips do not have quick replacements.