*

Synopsys ( SNPS ), Cadence and Siemens restoring access for Chinese

customers

*

Ethane producers also informed that curbs lifted

*

US had escalated countermeasures after Beijing curbed

exports of

rare earths

(Recasts and writes through)

By Karen Freifeld and Surbhi Misra

NEW YORK, July 2 (Reuters) - The United States has

lifted restrictions on exports to China for chip design software

developers and ethane producers, a further sign of de-escalating

U.S.-Sino trade tensions including concessions from Beijing over

rare earths.

Synopsys ( SNPS ), Cadence Design Systems ( CDNS ) and

Siemens, three of the world's largest electronic

design automation (EDA) software developers, said on Wednesday

they are restoring access to their software and technology for

customers in China.

Earlier in the day, the U.S. also sent letters to ethane

producers to rescind a restrictive licensing requirement on

exports to China imposed in late May and June.

The restrictions on EDA software developers and ethane

producers were just some of many countermeasures imposed by U.S.

President Donald Trump's administration in response to China's

export suspension of rare earths and related magnets in April.

Beijing's move on rare earths, part of retaliation against

Trump's earlier tariffs this year, has upended supply chains

central to automakers, aerospace manufacturers, semiconductor

companies and military contractors. The issue threatened to

scupper a bilateral trade deal.

On Friday, China's commerce ministry said that following

talks with the U.S., the two sides have confirmed a framework

under which China will review export applications for controlled

items while the U.S. will cancel corresponding restrictive

measures.

"The U.S. have escalated to de-escalate. They put

restrictions on many more items in order to get the Chinese to

back off on rare earths," according to a source familiar with

discussions inside the U.S. government.

"As the U.S. and China continue to hold to this framework

agreement, we're gonna see a lot of these restrictions go away.

Going back to a status quo, where we were at in Feb/March," said

the source who was not authorised to speak to media and declined

to be identified.

EDA RELIEF

Siemens said in a statement that it has resumed sales and

support for Chinese customers after it was recently notified by

the U.S. Department of Commerce that export control restrictions

for customers in China were no longer in place.

Synopsys ( SNPS ) expects to complete system updates to restore

access and support to Chinese customers within three business

days, according to a company letter to staff seen by Reuters.

The U.S. Department of Commerce did not immediately respond

to Reuters' requests for comment.

Long-term restrictions on Chinese access to EDA software

would have significantly hampered China's chip design industry.

Synopsys ( SNPS ), Cadence and Siemens command more than 70% of China's

EDA market, Chinese state news agency Xinhua reported in April.

It was not immediately clear if other countermeasures

imposed by the U.S. have been lifted. These include the

suspension of licenses for GE Aerospace to ship jet engines for

the C919 aircraft of Chinese airplane maker COMAC and

for nuclear equipment suppliers to sell to Chinese power plants.