China welcomes resumption of Nvidia H20 AI chip sales; Japan warns tariffs ‘not right tool'

The Guardian

5 hours ago

Update:
Date:
Title: Introduction: China says 'win-win cooperation is the right path' as Nvidia H20 sales cleared
Content: Good morning and welcome to our rolling coverage of business, the financial markets and the world economy.
Relations between the US and China appear to have warmed, slightly, after chipmaker Nvidia was given a green light by Washington to resume sales of its H20 AI chip to Chinese companies.
Nvidia's CEO, Jensen Huang, revealed earlier this week that the US government has assured his company that licences for H20 chip sales to China would be granted, and that deliveries could start soon.
That reverses a restriction announced in April, when the White House announced tighter controls on exports of computer chips used for artificial intelligence.
And today, Beijing has welcomed this change of heart, confirming that the US has 'taken initiatives' to approve H20 sales to China again.
China's Commerce Ministry said in a statement that 'win-win cooperation' was the right path to go down, and that it hopes the two countries can 'meet each other half way' and work together.
The ministry also urged the US to abandon its 'zero-sum mentality' and cancel 'unreasonable' trade restrictions on China, warning that 'suppression' will not lead to solutions.
The H20 graphics processing unit, or GPU, is an advanced chip for use in AI systems. But it's less powerful than Nvidia's top semiconductors today, as it was designed to comply with US restrictions for exports of AI chips to China.
Earlier this week, commerce secretary Howard Lutnick revealed that the renewed sale of H20 chips to China was linked to a rare earths magnet deal. He also claimed Nvidia would only be selling China its 'fourth best' chip.
Even so, the prospect of more sales to China pushed Nvidia's shares to record highs this week.
Nvidia stock closed at a new record high on Tuesday after the AI chipmaker said it was applying to resume sales of its H20 GPUs in China following a US ban that cost the company billions in lost sales.$NVDA $170.7, +4.04%https://t.co/3NVegHGRHE pic.twitter.com/FdxBGQ8KGF
Orders from Chinese companies for H20 chips need to be sent by Nvidia to the U.S. government for approval.
9.30am BST: UK insolvency data
10am BST: Eurozone construction output data for May
1.30pm BST: US housing starts data for June
3pm BST: University of Michigan consumer confidence report
Update:
Date: 2025-07-18T06:59:59.000Z
Title: Japan's Kato says tariffs not right tool to fix trade imbalances
Content: Donald Trump's trade war has loomed over the meeting of G20 finance ministers in South Africa this week.
Japan told the gathering of advanced economies in Durban that tariffs aren't the right way to fix trade imbalances.
Finance minister Katsunobu Kato told reporters at the G20:
'Japan said that tariffs aren't really the right tool to fix excessive current accounts imbalances.'
Kato argued that countries facing such situations need to address them through domestic efforts, rather than slapping new levies on imports.
The US's trade balance (rarely the healthiest) has actually worsened this year, as American companies raced to import goods before tariffs were imposed.
However, US Treasury secretary Scott Bessent won't have heard Kato's message as he's not attending the G20.
A finance ministry official accompanying Kato explained that many G20 members argued that market stresses appear to have eased somewhat, Bloomberg reports, as the world economy hasn't suffered as much as expected from the trade war [although, of course, some of Trump's new tariffs now don't start until 1 August].
Update:
Date: 2025-07-18T06:59:19.000Z
Title: Introduction: China says 'win-win cooperation is the right path' as Nvidia H20 sales cleared
Content: Good morning and welcome to our rolling coverage of business, the financial markets and the world economy.
Relations between the US and China appear to have warmed, slightly, after chipmaker Nvidia was given a green light by Washington to resume sales of its H20 AI chip to Chinese companies.
Nvidia's CEO, Jensen Huang, revealed earlier this week that the US government has assured his company that licences for H20 chip sales to China would be granted, and that deliveries could start soon.
That reverses a restriction announced in April, when the White House announced tighter controls on exports of computer chips used for artificial intelligence.
And today, Beijing has welcomed this change of heart, confirming that the US has 'taken initiatives' to approve H20 sales to China again.
China's Commerce Ministry said in a statement that 'win-win cooperation' was the right path to go down, and that it hopes the two countries can 'meet each other half way' and work together.
The ministry also urged the US to abandon its 'zero-sum mentality' and cancel 'unreasonable' trade restrictions on China, warning that 'suppression' will not lead to solutions.
The H20 graphics processing unit, or GPU, is an advanced chip for use in AI systems. But it's less powerful than Nvidia's top semiconductors today, as it was designed to comply with US restrictions for exports of AI chips to China.
Earlier this week, commerce secretary Howard Lutnick revealed that the renewed sale of H20 chips to China was linked to a rare earths magnet deal. He also claimed Nvidia would only be selling China its 'fourth best' chip.
Even so, the prospect of more sales to China pushed Nvidia's shares to record highs this week.
Nvidia stock closed at a new record high on Tuesday after the AI chipmaker said it was applying to resume sales of its H20 GPUs in China following a US ban that cost the company billions in lost sales.$NVDA $170.7, +4.04%https://t.co/3NVegHGRHE pic.twitter.com/FdxBGQ8KGF
Orders from Chinese companies for H20 chips need to be sent by Nvidia to the U.S. government for approval.
9.30am BST: UK insolvency data
10am BST: Eurozone construction output data for May
1.30pm BST: US housing starts data for June
3pm BST: University of Michigan consumer confidence report