In a fresh escalation of its economic and geopolitical pressure campaign, the United States has imposed sanctions on a Chinese refinery and has tightened restrictions on exports of high-performance artificial intelligence chips to China. The US State Department on Wednesday announced sanctions against Shandong Shengxing Chemical Co, LTD, a China based independent refinery, for buying over $1 billion worth of Iranian crude oil. The move is part of Washington’s broader initiative to disturb Iran’s oil revenue, as per a report by ANI.
US latest sanction Chinese refinery
”This refinery is being sanctioned for violating US restrictions by purchasing large volumes of Iranian oil,” a senior US official stated. He restated that the Trump administration continues to be committed to restricting Iran’s oil exports, especially those that are directed towards China. The action will also be applied to shipping firms and vessels supposed to be part of Iran’s oil export operations.
This is the second time that Washington is targeting a Chinese ”teapot” refinery under policies implemented by US President Donald Trump. Officials have highlighted that sanctions enforcement would remain strong as part of the ongoing strategy to push maximum pressure on Iran.
Intel joins Nvidia in facing restrictions
Meanwhile, trade friction between the US and China has further deepened in the tech field. After recent curbs on Nvidia’s H20 AP processors, the company stated that it could lead to a $5.5 billion revenue hit. Intel has reportedly started informing Chinese clients that it will now need a license to sell some of its advanced chips.
According to the Financial Times, Intel, headed by CEO Lip-Bu Tan, informed clients last week that licenses would be compulsory for exporting chips with DRAM bandwidth of 1,400 GB/S or more, I/O bandwidth of 1,100 GB/s or more, or a total of more than 1,700 GB/s.
Moreover, adding to the global chip sector’s unpredictability, Dutch semiconductor equipment maker ASML has also raised risks to its growth outlook because of the tightening export curtailment.
These combined developments are highlighting Washington’s double planning of targeting Iran’s financial networks and restricting China’s access to semiconductor technologies.
(With inputs from Agencies)