When Washington introduced expansive controls in October restricting chip and equipment exports to China, Beijing accused the US of “bullying” its tech sector and “violating the spirit of co-operation”. 

Such responses, amounting to little more than verbal bluster in response to a slow strangling of semiconductor supplies, reflected its industry’s reliance on foreign chip technology and the need to tread carefully with any retaliatory measures.

But 10 days ago, Beijing finally went on the offensive, with the Cyberspace Administration of China announcing an investigation on national security grounds into Idaho-based memory chip manufacturer Micron Technology. The CAC said it would review imports of Micron’s products to ensure the security of its information infrastructure.