By Brian Swint

The U.S. has eased restrictions on exports of semiconductor design software to China, according to three companies impacted by the curbs. That's giving a boost to some stocks in the sector.

Shares of Synopsys and Cadence were both up around 5% in premarket trading Thursday. Those are two of the three companies that The Wall Street Journal reported as having been informed by the Bureau of Industry and Security that the rules had been eased. The third is German engineering giant Siemens, which was up 1.5% in Frankfurt trading.

The move comes after the U.S. and China confirmed the framework of a trade agreement last week, following talks in Geneva in May. China is expected to ease restrictions on rare-earth minerals that U.S. firms need to make batteries and electronics.

"Synopsys is working to restore access to the recently restricted products in China," the company said in a statement on its website, confirming it had been informed of the restrictions being lifted. "Synopsys is continuing to assess the impact of export restrictions related to China on its business, operating results and financials."

Siemens confirmed that it had been told the restrictions had been rescinded. "We appreciate the patience of our customers as we have navigated the rapidly changing global trade landscape and understand the inconvenience this may have caused," a spokesperson for the company said in an emailed statement to Barron's.

Cadence and the U.S. Commerce Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Combined with yesterday's announcement of a new trade deal with Vietnam that expressly tries to prevent Chinese exports from getting around higher tariffs by coming through its neighbor, it's another nudge to get a trade deal with China that should set tariff rates for the longer term.

The deal reduces the tax on imports from Vietnam to 20%, down from the 46% announced in April. But it raises the levy to 40% if the goods are shipped from third countries through Vietnam. The current tariff rate on imports from China currently stands at about 30%, and more for certain products.

The hope now is that the Vietnam agreement is the first of a series with other Asian nations such as Thailand, the Philippines, and Malaysia that will give companies some certainty about future trade costs. Trump said earlier this week that a deal with Japan is unlikely in the next few weeks.

Write to Brian Swint at brian.swint@barrons.com

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July 03, 2025 07:46 ET (11:46 GMT)

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