THE Chinese Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) urged the Netherlands on Saturday to present constructive proposals and take practical measures as soon as possible to resolve the Nexperia issue at its source. The ministry confirmed that China has agreed to a visit from the Dutch side for negotiations.

This development follows an update from Dutch Economic Affairs Minister Vincent Karremans on Thursday evening, in which he stated that shipments of Nexperia chips from China to Europe and other parts of the world should reach customers "in the coming days." Karremans added, "The Netherlands will closely monitor and support these developments, and will take the appropriate steps on our part where necessary."

In response, a MOFCOM spokesperson said that China has taken note of the minister's remarks but has yet to see any concrete actions from the Dutch side to stop infringing upon the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese enterprises and restore stability to the global semiconductor supply chain.

The spokesperson stated that China, in line with its responsible approach to safeguarding the global semiconductor supply chain, announced an exemption for eligible exports on Nov. 1. They emphasized that the root cause of the current disruption lies with the Netherlands.

Media reports suggest the Dutch minister is prepared to withdraw his Sept. 30 takeover order if China lifts its export ban on Nexperia chips, though this has not been officially confirmed by the Dutch side.

In September, Karremans intervened in Nexperia under a national security law that allows the ministry to block or reverse company decisions in exceptional cases, a measure he said was taken to safeguard chip supplies for Dutch and European industries.

Nexperia, based in Nijmegen, was acquired in 2019 by Chinese electronics firm Wingtech. It operates a major production site in China, which manufactures around 50 billion chips a year.

Following the Dutch intervention, China imposed an export ban, preventing those chips from leaving the country and cutting off supplies to the European automotive industry.

One day later, Amsterdam’s company court suspended Zhang Xuezheng, the CEO of Nexperia’s Chinese parent company Wingtech, from his role at Nexperia. All but one of the company’s shares were placed under the control of an independent administrator.

On Thursday, MOFCOM announced it had approved export licenses and exemptions to facilitate the resumption of chip exports from Nexperia's China operations.

While the Dutch-headquartered, Chinese-owned company runs front-end manufacturing in Germany and the U.K., a significant share of its chip packaging and distribution takes place in China. This move is expected to ease concerns about potential shortages for Europe's automotive industry, which relies heavily on Nexperia-manufactured chips.

(SD-Agencies)