U.S. Semiconductor Export Controls on China: Layered Restrictions, Coverage Gaps, and a Tightening Trajectory
An October 2020 CSET brief describes how U.S. semiconductor export controls toward China combine list-based controls with stricter end-use/end-user measures, increasingly reinforced through entity listings and military end-use restrictions. The source indicates that permissive licensing and narrowing coverage helped drive rising exports—especially SME from 2014–2019—though tightening policies were beginning to shift trade and compliance dynamics.