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An ASML icon is being displayed on a circuit board, alongside the flags of the USA and China, in this photo illustration taken in Brussels, Belgium, on January 4, 2024.

Jonathan Raa | Nurphoto | Getty Images

Shares of key global semiconductor equipment firms jumped on Thursday after a report that the U.S. is considering sanctions on China’s chip industry that stop short of earlier proposals.

ASML was around 3.6% higher in early trade in Europe. Tokyo Electron was more than 6% higher in Japan where it trades.

Bloomberg reported on Wednesday that Washington is considering further measures to restrict sales of semiconductor equipment and AI memory chips to China, but that the new rules could stop short of earlier proposals that were seen as stricter.

The U.S. Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the Bloomberg report.

The U.S. is now considering adding fewer suppliers to Chinese technology giant Huawei to an export blacklist known as the Entity List. According to the report, one key Chinese firm that won’t be added is ChangXin Memory Technologies, a memory company and potential rival to the likes of SK Hynix and Samsung.

Analysts at Jefferies said ASML had previously guided toward a 30% decline in its revenue from China next year. The exclusion of that company could mean that ASML’s sales in China “decline by less than expected next year,” Jefferies said Thursday.

ASML has been caught in the crosshairs of the U.S. and China’s technology battle over semiconductors because of the Dutch firm’s critical position in the chip supply chain.

ASML produces a machine that chipmakers require to manufacture the most advanced semiconductors. Those machines have not yet been exported to China due to various export controls. More recently, the Dutch and U.S. governments have imposed restrictions that make it more difficult for ASML to export some of its less advanced machines to China.

The company sells its machines to “fabs” or plants that actually manufacture chips such as Taiwan’s TSMC as well as SMIC in China. Any rules that hit demand or directly target semiconductor manufacturers will have a negative impact on ASML.

The Bloomberg report suggested that further sanctions under consideration would target Chinese firms making semiconductor manufacturing equipment, rather than the factories that actually make the chips. This is also a positive for ASML and other foreign semiconductor equipment firms that sell to fabs.

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23andMe to delist from Nasdaq, deregister with SEC

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23andMe to delist from Nasdaq, deregister with SEC

A sign is posted in front of the 23andMe headquarters in Sunnyvale, California, on Feb. 1, 2024.

Justin Sullivan | Getty Images

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23andMe said it will file a Form 25 Notification of Delisting with the SEC on or around June 6, which would subsequently remove the stock from listing and registering with the Nasdaq.

The company said the Nasdaq had originally informed the company that a Form 25 would be filed in March, but since the exchange has not yet submitted the filing, 23andMe is doing so voluntarily.

23andMe exploded into the mainstream because of its at-home DNA testing kits that allowed customers to examine their genetic profiles. At its peak, the company was valued at around $6 billion.

But after going public via a merger with a special purpose acquisition company in 2021, the company struggled to generate recurring revenue and stand up viable research or therapeutics businesses.

Regeneron’s deal is still subject to approval by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Missouri. Pending approval, it’s expected to close in the third quarter of this year.

WATCH: The rise and fall of 23andMe

The rise and fall of 23andMe

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Tesla shares climb as Musk pledges to be ‘super focused’ on companies ahead of Starship launch

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Tesla shares climb as Musk pledges to be 'super focused' on companies ahead of Starship launch

Elon Musk listens as reporters ask U.S. President Donald Trump and South Africa President Cyril Ramaphosa questions during a press availability in the Oval Office at the White House on May 21, 2025 in Washington, DC.

Chip Somodevilla | Getty Images

Tesla shares gained about 5% on Tuesday after CEO Elon Musk over the weekend reiterated his intent to home in on his businesses ahead of the latest SpaceX rocket launch.

The billionaire wrote in a post to his social media platform X that he needs to be “super focused” on X, artificial intelligence company xAI and Tesla as they launch “critical technologies” on the heels of a temporary outage.

“As evidenced by the uptime issues this week, major operational improvements need to be made,” he wrote, adding that he would return to “spending 24/7” at work. “The failover redundancy should have worked, but did not.”

An outage over the weekend briefly shuttered the social media platform formerly known as Twitter for thousands of users, according to DownDetector. Earlier in the week, the platform suffered a data center outage. X has suffered a series of outages since Musk purchased the platform in 2022.

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Musk has previously indicated plans to step away from his political work and prioritize his businesses.

During Tesla’s April earnings call he said that he would “significantly” reduce his time running President Donald Trump‘s Department of Government Efficiency.

In the last election cycle, Musk devoted time and billions of dollars to political causes and toward electing Trump in 2024. However, a story over the weekend from the Washington Post, citing sources familiar with the matter, said that Musk has grown disillusioned with politics and wants to return to managing his businesses.

Last week, Musk said in an interview at the Qatar Economic Forum that he planned to spend “a lot less” on campaign donations going forward.

The comments from Musk precede SpaceX’s Starship rocket Tuesday evening. Pressure is on for the company after two Starship rockets exploded in January and March.

Ahead of the launch, Musk announced an all hands livestream on X at 1 p.m.

Tesla is still facing fallout from Musk’s political foray, with protests at showrooms and other brand damage.

In April, Tesla sold 7,261 cars in Europe, down 49% from last year, according to the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association.

WATCH: Elon Musk: We have seen a major rebound in demand

Elon Musk: We have seen a major rebound in demand

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Trump advisor Hassett says ‘we don’t want to harm’ Apple with iPhone tariffs

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Trump advisor Hassett says 'we don't want to harm' Apple with iPhone tariffs

NEC Director Kevin Hassett on Trump's iPhone tariff threat: In the end, we don't want to harm Apple

National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett said Tuesday that the Trump administration does not want to “harm Apple” with tariffs.

“Everybody is trying to make it seem like it’s a catastrophe if there’s a tiny little tariff on them right now, to try to negotiate down the tariffs,” Hassett told CNBC’s “Squawk Box” on Tuesday. “In the end, we’ll see what happens, we’ll see what the update is, but we don’t want to harm Apple.”

Hassett’s comments come after President Donald Trump said in a social media post that Apple will have to pay a tariff of 25% or more for iPhones made outside the U.S. Apple has historically manufactured its products in foreign countries including China, India and Vietnam.

“I have long ago informed Tim Cook of Apple that I expect their iPhone’s that will be sold in the United States of America will be manufactured and built in the United States, not India, or anyplace else,” Trump wrote in the post. “If that is not the case, a Tariff of at least 25% must be paid by Apple to the U.S. Thank your for your attention to this matter!”

By some estimates, a U.S.-made iPhone could cost as much as $3,500.

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“If you think that Apple has a factory some place that’s got a set number of iPhones that it produces and it needs to sell them no matter what, then Apple will bear those tariffs, not consumers, because it’s an elastic supply,” Hassett said.

Hasset’s comments continue the administration’s push to pressure companies to shoulder the cost burden of Trump’s tariffs, instead of raising prices for consumers.

Earlier this month, Trump told retail giant Walmart to “EAT THE TARIFFS” after the company warned it would have to pass those added costs on.

Shares of Apple were up more than 1% Tuesday.

Apple did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment.

WATCH: NEC Director Kevin Hassett on Trump’s iPhone tariff threat: In the end, we don’t want to harm Apple

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