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Reports: US investigates possible semiconductor smuggling via K+N's Apex

The US government is investigating Kuehne and Nagel's subsidiary Apex Logistics for possible involvement in the smuggling of semiconductors to China. The US has introduced export restrictions on Nvidia's most modern chips since 2022, but authorities are now looking into whether they have entered China through Apex Logistics, said Air Cargo News' sister magazine, Nieuwsblad Transport, citing Bloomberg. According to Bloomberg, the investigation revolves around the question of whether Apex violated US export restrictions when transporting AI systems from Super Micro Computer. Nvidia's chips are considered the standard for training and running AI models and companies such as Super Micro process them in servers. According to sources, Apex would have facilitated a route in which the servers went from Taiwan to the US, and then ended up in Hong Kong via an Asian destination. Apex says it is aware of the concerns in Washington surrounding "a small number of shipments that Apex carried out in 2024 that may have involved equipment that was eventually sent to banned locations." It is unclear what quantities of Nvidia chips are involved in the investigation by the US. The US wants to stop the supply of advanced chip technology to China for fear that the country will gain military advantage from it. Since the introduction of the export restrictions, a network for shadow trade has been created that, according to the US government, has still resulted in billions of dollars worth of Nvidia chips being transported to China.

Singapore plays by the rules and won't tolerate tariff evasion, says trade minister

Singapore is making clear that its position as one of Asia's biggest transhipment and trading hubs does not extend to helping exporters disguise the Chinese origin of goods to circumvent US tariffs. Deputy PM and trade minister Gan Kim Yong (pictured) said Singapore did not support the use of its trade and logistics infrastructure to bypass tariffs, as the city-state seeks to address US allegations over the rerouting of China-made goods through third countries. At the Economic Society of Singapore's 70 anniversary dinner, he said: "We frown upon such practices." Mr Gan, recently on a US visit, during which he met with US trade representative Jamieson Greer, emphasised that Singapore must maintain the credibility it had built as a trusted international trading hub. "It's important for us to safeguard that trust by making sure that we are very stringent on the rules of origin... From time to time, we do need to take action, to demonstrate our seriousness in enforcing the rules." Washington recently identified Singapore as one of around 40 economies allegedly forming part of what it described as a "shadow transhipment network". The US has accused Chinese exporters of using third countries to disguise the origin of goods to avoid tariffs. Singapore has rejected the suggestion that its legitimate transhipment trade amounted to tariff evasion. And for Singapore's maritime and logistics sector, the distinction is critical. Transhipment does not change a product's country of origin. Goods moving through Singapore remain China-origin goods unless they undergo processing in Singapore that meets applicable rules of origin. Singapore Customs has reiterated that the US uses the "substantial transformation" test when determining whether a product qualifies as Singapore-origin. Minimal processing or assembly normally does not confer this status. That means a Chinese-made product cannot simply be shipped into Singapore, repacked or minimally processed, and then declared as Singapore-origin to obtain preferential treatment or avoid US tariffs. Mr Gan pointed to a recent Singapore enforcement case as evidence that the government was prepared to act against companies that cross that line. On 14 August, a Singapore-registered company, Healthy Living Biotech, Singapore residents Yin Yuxi, 28, and Bernard Koh Wee Yiap, 54, along with Chinese national Xue Xin, 37, were charged over falsely declared China-made mattresses as Singapore-origin goods to evade US import duties.

Kuehne + Nagel - Apex chip smuggling investigation hits the wires

"The US government is investigating [Kuehne + Nagel's] Apex Logistics for its suspected role in smuggling Nvidia Corp. AI chips to China" - Bloomberg, 27 August 2026. (Timing sucks?) If you recall, Lawrence Lim wrote for Premium about Kuehne + Nagel's (K+N) 'deliberate path' to an Apex listing last month. When asked about Premium's exclusive (followed by Bloomberg coverage two days later), during the Q&A session of the call with management on Q2 26 numbers, CFO Markus Blanka-Graff replied to Barclays analyst Marco ...