Chip stocks gained on Friday after Bloomberg News reported that looming US restrictions on the Chinese semiconductor industry may be less severe than expected. Direxion Daily Semiconductor Bull 3x Shares rose 7%; Applied Materials, ASML rose about 4%; , Nvidia, and Arm rose nearly 3%.

A report said the Biden administration's crackdown on semiconductor sales to China will be less severe than some had expected.

The rally came after news about the U.S. government's plan to restrict sales of semiconductor tools to China. The Biden administration is considering imposing more curbs, but the measures won't be as tough as some previously expected, according to a Bloomberg report that cited people familiar with the matter. The measures could be announced as early as next week, per the outlet.

U.S.-listed chip-equipment-making stocks such as Applied Materials, Lam Research, KLA, and Teradyne could all benefit if the government does opt for a slightly less hawkish policy, because a harsher crackdown on semiconductor exports to China would likely drag down their sales.