Apple has suspended plans to use memory chips made in China
According to allegations in the media, the computer giant Apple has put its intentions to employ memory chips manufactured by the Chinese company Yangtze Memory Technologies Co. (YMTC) in its products on hold because of political pressure. According to Nikkei Asia, this action comes at the same time as the most recent round of export limitations that the United States of America has imposed against China’s technology industry. According to the source, Apple had previously authorized YMTC’s 3D NAND flash memory for use in iPhones before the US government tightened export restrictions on China earlier this month. These restrictions were placed by the US government in response to China’s rise in economic power.
However, supply chain insiders were quoted as claiming that Apple had initially planned to adopt YMTC’s chips by this year due to the fact that they are at least 20 percent less expensive than those of Apple’s competitors. The government subsidizes YMTC. The term “NAND” refers to flash memory, which is an important part of all electronic devices like computers, phones, and servers.
Since the enhanced regulations, tensions with Beijing have escalated because businesses risk being blacklisted if they do not supply the required information within sixty days of being asked for it. In addition, the United States Department of Commerce looked into YMTC to determine whether or not it broke Washington’s export rules by supplying chips to Huawei, a company that is already on a blacklist.