China has opened an investigation into US chip giant Qualcomm, as it intensifies its technology war with Washington amid escalating trade tensions.
The company was suspected of violating China’s anti-monopoly law in its acquisition of Israeli vehicle semiconductor company Autotalks, the State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) said in a statement on Friday, without disclosing further details.
Qualcomm announced in June that it had completed the acquisition of Autotalks, which specialises in “direct vehicle-to-everything” solutions.
The US chipmaker did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The SAMR’s action followed a series of measures by Beijing that seemed to be a response to US restrictions limiting China’s access to advanced semiconductors.
Earlier this week, China’s Ministry of Commerce added Canadian chip consultancy TechInsights to an “unreliable entity list”, prohibiting Chinese individuals and organisations from sharing data or providing sensitive information to the firm.
