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By Leo Marchandon
(Reuters) -Dutch semiconductor equipment maker ASM International on Wednesday said the new U.S. export controls were largely in line with its earlier 2025 outlook, based on its preliminary analysis.
The U.S. government announced updated export regulations on Monday, including new restrictions on semiconductor equipment applications to China.
ASM's larger peer ASML has also said the new restrictions were unlikely to impact its most recent financial guidance.
These statements suggest that the latest regulatory changes, which include limitations on the delivery of high-bandwidth memory chips to China, are unlikely to cause significant shifts in the strategic direction or financial targets of major semiconductor industry players in Europe.
The package also introduces new restrictions on chip-manufacturing tools and software, and new export controls on equipment production in countries such as Singapore and Malaysia.
"Export control regulations are also expected to impact other segments and equipment categories in which our company is not active, and as such there could be an indirect impact to ASM," the company said in a statement.
ASM reaffirmed its revenue goal of between 3.2 billion and 3.6 billion euros ($3.4 billion and $3.8 billion) for 2025.
For the first half of next year, it sees a further moderate sales decline in China compared to the latter half of 2024. It also expects full-year 2025 sales in China to fall year-on-year.
"We expect ASM's China equipment sales as a percentage of total ASM sales to be in a range of low to high 20s percentage," it said.
ASM also maintained its sales guidance for the fourth-quarter of 2024 at 770-810 million euros, and said its July-December sales were expected to rise by more than 15% compared to the first half of the year.
The company's shares were up 1.5% by 0820 GMT.
($1 = 0.9508 euros)
(Reporting by Leo Marchandon in Gdansk Editing by Louise Heavens and Milla Nissi)