Texas Instruments, Analog Devices Stocks Fall. China Inquiry Targets U.S. Chip Makers.

China launched an anti-dumping investigation targeting certain U.S. analog chip makers. Texas Instruments shares fell in premarket trading. (Zim235/Dreamstime.com)

Key Points

About This Summary

• China started an anti-dumping investigation into specific analog integrated circuit chips from the U.S.
• Texas Instruments and Analog Devices stocks fell following the announcement of the investigation.
• China is also investigating if the U.S. discriminated against Chinese firms via chip trade policies.

Shares of Texas Instruments and Analog Devices were among the worst performers in the S&P 500 index in premarket trading Monday after China launched two investigations targeting U.S. chip makers.

The Chinese Ministry of Commerce announced over the weekend that it initiated an anti-dumping investigation on imports of relevant analog integrated circuit (IC) chips originating in the U.S., according to a translation of an official statement published online.

Makers of analog and embedded semiconductors often used in the auto and industrial industries, as opposed to the artificial-intelligence chips produced by Nvidia, fell in premarket trading Monday.

Analog Devices was the biggest faller in the S&P 500 in premarket trading, down 2.6% to $238.90. Texas Instruments, ON Semiconductor and NXP Semiconductors weren’t far behind, falling between 2.4% and 1.9% each.

The companies didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment outside regular working hours.

Nvidia stock was also down early Monday after China’s market regulator said a preliminary investigation found that it had violated antitrust regulations.

In a separate statement, the Commerce Ministry said it launched an investigation into whether the U.S. has discriminated against Chinese companies through its trade policies on chips.

The developments come amid a new round of trade talks between Chinese and U.S officials, taking place in Spain September 14-17. The world’s two largest economies have agreed to pause tariffs on each others’ goods for now; in August, President Donald Trump extended the deadline to Nov. 9.

On Friday, the U.S. Commerce Department added 32 entities—23 of which in China—to a restricted trade list.

Write to Elsa Ohlen at elsa.ohlen@barrons.com