Some Nexperia chip shipments resume as Germany welcomes ‘de-escalation’

BERLIN/TOKYO: Semi-conductor maker Nexperia has resumed some shipments of its vital chips, auto executives said on Friday, with Germany welcoming signs of de-escalation in a fight for control of the company that has rattled the car industry.

Nexperia, Chinese-owned but based in the Netherlands, makes billions of simple but ubiquitous chips for cars and other electronics. Supply of those chips has been snarled since a dispute between Amsterdam and Beijing over technology transfers amid a broader US-China trade war.

“The de-escalation and continuation of negotiations between the Netherlands and China are very welcome at this point,” said a spokesperson for the economy ministry in Germany, Europe’s biggest car manufacturer.

The ministry remains hopeful that “short-term individual permits will quickly reach the industry”, allowing Nexperia’s chip shipments to resume, the spokesperson added.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said there were positive signals that deliveries could restart, “possibly within the next few hours”.