China has increased its microchip imports from the United States due to fears of future sanctions from President-elect Donald Trump’s administration.

In October, China’s semiconductor purchases from the US reached US$1.11 billion, a 60% increase from the previous year, according to customs data.

For the first ten months of the year, China imported US$9.61 billion worth of microchips from the US.

This marked a 42.5% rise over the same period last year. Since June, monthly imports have exceeded US$1 billion.