Corinne Reichert/CNET
Huawei said Monday its business will “inevitably be affected” by the Trump administration’s attempt to restrict global chip supplies to the company.
Guo Ping, says he’s “confident” the company will find a solution soon. Guo also said the company is committed to complying with US regulations in a keynote speech given at Huawei’s headquarters in Shenzhen, China during its global analyst summit.
“Survival is the keyword for us at present,” Guo added.
His comments, along with a company statement released afterwards, are Huawei’s first official responses to the Trump administration’s move to block its global chip supply last week.
Huawei’s rotating chairman Guo Ping delivers a keynote speech during the company’s annual analyst summit at its headquarters in Shenzhen, China.
Screenshot by Sareena Dayaram/CNET
The new rules, which were unveiled by the Commerce Department, require overseas semiconductor firms that use US technology and equipment to apply for a license before selling to Huawei.
“The US is leveraging its own technological strengths to crush companies outside its own borders,” Huawei said in a statement on Monday. “This will only serve to undermine the trust international companies place in US technology and supply chains. Ultimately, this will harm US interests.”
Calling Washington’s new rules “pernicious” and “arbitrary,” the statement went on to warn that it threatens to undermine the global semiconductor industry and broader economy.
The rules follow a ban imposed on Huawei last year, which prohibits American companies from selling technology and parts to the Chinese company. That ban was extended for another year earlier this month. Guo said the Huawei has responded to it by increasing spending on research and development.
In response to Washington’s new export controls, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing, the world’s largest contract chip-maker, stopped taking new orders from Huawei, according to a report published earlier Monday by Nikkei Asia Review. TSMC dismissed the report as “purely market rumours,” according to Reuters.
The US has long alleged that Huawei maintains a tight relationship with the Chinese government and that equipment from the company could be used to spy on other countries and companies. Huawei has repeatedly denied this.
In April, Huawei reported that revenue growth slowed sharply in the first quarter, amid pressure from the US and the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
