US prepares action targeting allies’ chip plants in China, WSJ reports

A US official has informed leading global semiconductor companies of plans to cancel waivers allowing them to use American technology in China, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday, citing people familiar with the matter.

Jeffrey Kessler, under secretary of commerce for industry and security at the Commerce Department, told Samsung Electronics, SK Hynix and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing this week that he wanted to cancel those waivers, WSJ reported.

Shares of US chip equipment makers that supply chipmaking plants in China fell on the news….