However, Wednesday’s proclamation warned a second phase of the national security probe could result in “broader tariffs on imports of semiconductors and their derivative products.”
Trump has threatened to hit chips with tariffs of up to 100 percent but over the past year has offered carve-outs and exemptions to companies who pledge to build more manufacturing capacity in the US.
Early last year, Nvidia committed to spending $500 billion over the next four years on manufacturing its products in the US, while TSMC has been building facilities in Arizona as part of a $165 billion investment project. The new TSMC plant started producing Nvidia’s most advanced Blackwell chips for the first time in October.
The vast majority of the world’s most advanced chips, however, are still manufactured in Taiwan before being shipped to other locations to be packaged or installed inside servers and devices.
Despite Trump’s decision to allow H200 exports, it remains unclear whether China will grant access. Beijing has been pushing tech companies to use domestic chips in a bid to achieve self-sufficiency in semiconductor production.
The FT previously reported that regulators were discussing ways to permit limited access to H200 chips, which tech giants such as Alibaba, ByteDance and Tencent prefer because of their higher performance and easier maintenance.
Two people with knowledge of the matter said Chinese customs officials had recently told logistics companies at the country’s ports not to submit clearing requests for H200 chips, though it was unclear whether the directive was temporary. China’s General Administration of Customs did not respond to a request for comment.
Nvidia on Wednesday welcomed the US move, saying Trump’s policy “strikes a thoughtful balance that is great for America.” AMD said it complied with all US export laws and policies.
The White House on Wednesday also unveiled the results of an investigation into critical minerals, concluding that US dependence on imports posed a national security threat.
Trump directed commerce secretary Howard Lutnick to negotiate deals with trading partners that included “trade-restricting measures” such as price floors for metals including gallium, germanium and rare earths.
The order stopped short of imposing tariffs on the materials, which are broadly used in industries from technology to energy and defence. But the White House said the president might take other action to address the risks, including if deals were not done within 180 days.
China dominates the market for a host of critical minerals, including rare earths, an advantage it has leveraged in recent months by cutting off access.
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