Qualcomm has obtained the US permission to sell 4G mobile chips to Huawei. This is an exemption from the Trump administration’s prohibition on doing business with Huawei. Reuters report. Qualcomm did not specify which products are allowed to be sold to Huawei, but told the media that they are related to mobile devices.
In May 2019, the White House issued an executive order prohibiting US companies from doing business with Chinese companies such as Huawei out of national security considerations. In May of this year, the U.S. Commerce Department tightened restrictions, requiring any overseas semiconductor manufacturer to obtain a U.S. license when using U.S. equipment or technology to make chips for Huawei. Effective in September, the United States began to require foreign semiconductor manufacturers to obtain licenses to sell chips, even if they were not designed for Huawei, these chips are used by Huawei.
Huawei said in August that its processor chips were exhausted because of US sanctions. Li Chengdong, CEO of Huawei’s consumer business unit, said at the time: “This year may be the last generation of Huawei’s Kirin high-end chips.” Although
was sanctioned by the United States, Huawei became the world’s largest smartphone supplier in July. Thanks to strong sales in the country. But it lost first place to Samsung last month. Huawei’s October shipments fell 24% year-on-year, while Samsung’s shipments increased 47%.
Qualcomm's license sold to Huawei only includes 4G chips, and it is unclear whether its license applies to 5G chips, which will be included in newer devices.
