China on Monday launched an investigation into US chip giant Nvidia Corp for allegedly violating its anti-monopoly laws, state broadcaster CCTV said.
The State Administration for Market Regulation, the authority on antitrust issues, launched the probe "in accordance with the law," according to CCTV.
Nvidia is also suspected of violating commitments it made in 2020, when it acquired Mellanox Technologies Ltd, CCTV said.
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After Beijing announced the probe, shares in Nvidia dropped 2.6 percent by Wall Street's close yesterday, precipitating a US stocks retreat.
"We are happy to answer any questions regulators may have about our business," an Nvidia spokesman said in a statement.
Nvidia succeeds "on merit... and customers can choose whatever solution is best for them," the California-based company added.
Nvidia’s position as the leading provider of artificial intelligence (AI) chips has put it in the crossfire of the US-China battle of tech supremacy. Washington has barred the company from selling its most advanced semiconductors to Chinese companies — undermining their ability to develop AI services — which has drawn sharp rebukes from Beijing.
Nvidia has repeatedly tried to develop AI chips that will comply with US controls and give Chinese customers some ability to work on the critical new technology.
Beijing last week said it would restrict exports to the US of some key components in making semiconductors, after Washington announced curbs targeting China’s ability to make advanced chips.
Among the materials banned from export are metals gallium, antimony and germanium, Chinese Ministry of Commerce said in a statement that cited "national security" concerns.
In its own latest curbs, Washington has announced restrictions on sales to 140 companies, including Chinese chip firms Piotech Inc (拓荊科技) and SiCarrier Technologies Co (新凱來), without additional permission.
The new US rules also include controls on two dozen types of chip-making equipment and three kinds of software tools for developing or producing semiconductors.
Taichung reported the steepest fall in completed home prices among the six special municipalities in the first quarter of this year, data compiled by Taiwan Realty Co (台灣房屋) showed yesterday. From January through last month, the average transaction price for completed homes in Taichung fell 8 percent from a year earlier to NT$299,000 (US$9,483) per ping (3.3m²), said Taiwan Realty, which compiled the data based on the government’s price registration platform. The decline could be attributed to many home buyers choosing relatively affordable used homes to live in themselves, instead of newly built homes in the city’s prime property market, Taiwan Realty
The government yesterday approved applications by Alphabet Inc’s Google to invest NT$27.08 billion (US$859.98 million) in Taiwan, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said in a statement. The Department of Investment Review approved two investments proposed by Google, with much of the funds to be used for data processing and electronic information supply services, as well as inventory procurement businesses in the semiconductor field, the ministry said. It marks the second consecutive year that Google has applied to increase its investment in Taiwan. Google plans to infuse NT$25.34 billion into Charter Investments Ltd (特許投資顧問) through its Singapore-based subsidiary Fructan Holdings Singapore Pte Ltd, and
Micron Technology Inc is a driving force pushing the US Congress to pass legislation that would put new export restrictions on equipment its Chinese competitors use to make their chips, according to people familiar with the matter. A US House of Representatives panel yesterday was to vote on the “MATCH Act,” a bill designed to close gaps in restrictions on chipmaking equipment. It would also pressure foreign companies that sell equipment to Chinese chipmaking facilities to align with export curbs on US companies like Lam Research Corp and Applied Materials Inc. The bill targets facilities operated by China’s ChangXin Memory Technologies Inc
Singapore-based ride-hailing and delivery giant Grab Holdings’ planned acquisition of Foodpanda’s Taiwan operations has yet to enter the formal review stage, as regulators await supplementary documents, the Fair Trade Commission (FTC) said yesterday. Acting FTC Chairman Chen Chih-min (陳志民) told the legislature’s Economics Committee that although Grab submitted its application on March 27, the case has not been officially accepted because required materials remain incomplete. Once the filing is finalized, the FTC would launch a formal probe into the deal, focusing on issues such as cross-shareholding and potential restrictions on market competition, Chen told lawmakers. Grab last month announced that it would acquire