Barron’s Quotes Kevin Wolf on Commerce Dept. Move to Further Limit Huawei Access to US Tech

Barron’s quoted Akin Gump international trade partner Kevin Wolf in an article on attempts by the U.S. Department of Commerce to further restrict access by China tech company Huawei to U.S. technology and how these moves could impact Taiwan and South Korea circuit and chip manufacturers.

On May 15, Commerce announced that case-by-case license requirements for direct sale involving Huawei would be extended to semiconductors that are the direct product of U.S. software and technology.

Wolf noted that Commerce’s move is undercut by loopholes. He noted that chipmakers may sidestep the announced restrictions by selling to intermediaries that work with Huawei or by claiming that chips are not a “direct product” of U.S. tech. He added, “There’s a puzzling delta between Commerce’s preamble and the actual text. There have been many calls to lawyers asking for explanations.”