US regulators open door to possible tightening of Huawei chip curb

U.S. regulators are open to making changes to close what some see as a loophole in a new rule aimed at curbing global chip sales to blacklisted Chinese telecoms equipment maker Huawei Technologies Ltd, two U.S. officials said.
The new rule, unveiled by the Commerce Department on Friday, expands U.S. authority to require licenses for sales to Huawei of semiconductors made abroad with U.S. technology, amplifying the department’s reach to halt exports to the world’s No. 2 smartphone maker.
But the rule only includes chips designed by Huawei and does not cover shipments if they are sent directly to Huawei’s customers. Some industry lawyers see this as a significant loophole.