ASML stocks fall after reports of China producing advanced chip machines

Chip companies ASML, Besi, and ASMI suffered heavy losses on the Damrak during the final trading hours on Monday. The trigger was a report that China plans to start producing certain advanced chip machines on a large scale.

According to tech news site The Information, China will start producing machines that use deep ultraviolet (DUV) immersion lithography. Reportedly, the machines will be supplied to several Chinese chip manufacturers.

The Chinese machines are still lagging behind in terms of performance and reliability and need to be tested further before mass production is possible, sources told the tech site. So, Dutch company ASML’s lead will remain intact for the time being.

Nevertheless, ASML shares ended 8.5 percent lower, at their lowest level since early June. Industry peer Besi fell by nearly 10 percent, taking the bottom spot in the AEX. The last time Besi was this low was in early April. ASMI lost over 7 percent of its value. The main index itself lost 0.8 percent to 1081.13 points.

The MidCap ended slightly higher. The index for mid-sized companies in Amsterdam closed at 1,090.97 points. On the stock markets in London, Paris, and Frankfurt, gains of up to 1.7 percent were recorded.

Investors' attention continued to focus on the Middle East. Oil prices fell sharply due to a ceasefire between the United States and Iran.

The price of a barrel of US oil dropped 6.5 percent to $83.51, and Brent crude became 7.3 percent cheaper at $89.72 per barrel. Last week, the price of Brent rose to over $100 per barrel.

Shell fell 1.1 percent on Monday, and maritime oil services provider SBM Offshore dropped 3.7 percent. British oil and gas company BP fell 2.6 percent in London, and French TotalEnergies dropped 1.8 percent in Paris.

In the MidCap, Air France-KLM actually benefited from lower oil prices with a gain of 1.3 percent, because airlines are sensitive to high fuel costs.