As China, US negotiate trade deal in Spain, Beijing probes American chips over dumping charges

China launched two probes into chips imported from the US on Saturday, in a major move against the American semiconductor sector, just days before talks in Spain between the two countries on trade, national security and the future of TikTok.

The Ministry of Commerce said it had opened an anti-dumping investigation into certain analogue IC chips from the US, including commodity interface chips and gate driver chips, products often made by firms such as Texas Instruments and ON Semiconductor.

At the same time, it announced a separate probe into what it called US “discrimination” against China’s chip industry.

All eyes at high-level talks in Madrid

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is due to meet Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng in Madrid between Sunday and Wednesday.

“US measures such as export curbs and tariffs constitute the containment and suppression of China’s development of high-tech industries,” a Chinese commerce ministry spokesperson said, naming advanced chips and artificial intelligence as key areas.

More from World

Are Trump, Xi finally meeting in October? A lot depends on what their envoys decide in Spain China’s August growth falters amid weak spending, property strains and US trade headwinds

Washington adds 23 Chinese firms to entity list

The move came a day after Washington added 23 Chinese firms to its “entity list,” restricting their access to US goods and technology for allegedly threatening US security and foreign policy interests.

Among them were two companies accused of obtaining chipmaking equipment for major Chinese manufacturer SMIC.

Efforts to ease tensions?

The Madrid talks mark the latest effort to ease tensions and delay new tariffs. The two sides have already held rounds of talks in Geneva, London and Stockholm this year, each time agreeing to 90-day pauses on escalating duties.

“We just need to de-risk with certain, strategic industries, whether it’s the rare earths, semiconductors, medicines, and we talked about what we could do together to get into balance within the relationship,” Bessent said earlier.

Restrictions under Trump and Biden

Both US President Donald Trump and Joe Biden imposed restrictions on China’s access to advanced semiconductors, including limits on chipmaking equipment sales. Washington frames these as national security measures, while Beijing insists they are part of a US strategy to curb its rise.