ASML Shares Slip on Report of U.S. Concern That China Has Its Tech

By Joe Stonor

ASML shares fell following a report that the Trump administration expressed concern that one of the Dutch company's high-end lithography machines is being used in China despite export restrictions.

Shares in Europe's most valuable company slid as much as 2.6% in morning trade before paring losses to fall 0.7%. That said, the stock--which makes up close to 8% of the Europe-wide Stoxx 600 index--is up around 80% so far this year.

U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick voiced concern to leaders at the Amsterdam-listed company that one of its extreme ultraviolet lithography machines had entered China, violating U.S.-led export restrictions, Bloomberg reported, citing unnamed sources.

"ASML has never shipped an EUV machine to China nor have we shipped to China any component, module or equipment specially designed to be used in an EUV machine," the company said in a statement. ASML has previously refuted suggestions it failed to comply with export controls.

ASML is the world's only supplier of the equipment necessary for manufacturing cutting-edge chips at scale, placing it at the center of the global artificial-intelligence arms race.

Its lithography machines--which are tightly controlled and require close supervision by ASML employees--use high-powered lasers to print microscopic patterns onto silicon discs. The company counts Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company and Samsung Electronics among its main clients.

"These are very difficult things to smuggle," Ben Barringer, head of technology research at investment manager Quilter Cheviot, said.

ASML said that the company regularly talks to government leaders across the globe.

"We recognize the national security considerations behind export control regulations in the U.S. and the Netherlands," the statement said.

ASML is accustomed to diplomatic tangles because of the importance of its equipment for leading-edge chips, the analyst said, a situation that means the company can't favor one country over another.

"It's got to maintain relationships with the Chinese. It's not just about siding with the U.S," Barringer said.

The Bloomberg report will likely put pressure on ASML given the sensitivity around the U.S.-China AI arms race, Tickmill market strategist Patrick Munnelly said.

"This matters beyond ASML itself because the global equity rally has been heavily dependent on the chip complex. Any renewed US-China technology restriction risk would cut directly against the AI-led optimism supporting markets," Munnelly wrote in a note to clients.

Write to Joe Stonor at josephmichael.stonor@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

June 19, 2026 07:57 ET (11:57 GMT)