ASML reported third-quarter 2026 results with gross revenue of €11.7 billion, a gross margin of 57.5%, and net income of €5.0 billion. The company also disclosed a sharp rise in system sales to China, which climbed to 23% of the total in Q3, up from 14% in the previous quarter. China now ranks third among ASML's buyers, behind Taiwan at 32% and South Korea at 31%, with the United States at 13%.
The surge is reportedly driven by Chinese memory and storage makers, including CXMT and YMTC, stockpiling lithography tools to support their expansion plans over the next three years. The rush comes even as these firms face tightening restrictions. Chinese customers have long been barred from ASML's EUV tools and rely on older DUV machinery.
Pressure is mounting on the Dutch government to halt exports of these DUV tools to China entirely. A proposed bipartisan US bill, the Multilateral Alignment of Technology Controls on Hardware (MATCH) Act, would push allied countries to ban exports of even the older DUV machines.
If such measures take effect, ASML could lose most of its exposure to China, erasing nearly one-quarter of its revenue source.
Source: TechPowerUp News · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing