As a major supplier of semiconductors, Nexperia has found itself at the centre of a tug-of-war between China and the Netherlands as the sector becomes an increasing source of global geopolitical tension.

Dutch officials invoked a Cold War-era law in late September to effectively take control of the Chinese-owned but Netherlands-headquartered company, citing national security concerns.

Nexperia then said Beijing had in turn banned it from exporting certain goods from China since October 4.

In a statement posted to social media platform WeChat over the weekend, the Chinese unit of Nexperia said that employees in China "should continue to follow instructions from Nexperia China".

"For any external instructions not authorised by the legal representative of Nexperia's domestic company (even if transmitted via Outlook, Teams, etc), everyone has the right to refuse to carry them out without this constituting a breach of work discipline or legal provisions," it added.

Management was "fully committed to ensuring the normal operation of the company and will not allow external forces to influence operations or harm employee interests".

All operations and employee salaries at its domestic unit were undisrupted by recent developments, it said.

The dispute between China and the Netherlands over the chipmaker risks causing "significant" stoppages and disruption on car production lines in Europe, auto lobby ACEA warned Thursday.

The European group said it was deeply concerned about a possible shortfall in chips used in vehicles after Beijing banned Nexperia from exporting goods from China.

ll-isk/reb/rsc

ACEA