The administration of US President Donald Trump is to announce the results of a national security probe into imports of semiconductors in two weeks, US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick said on Sunday, as Trump suggested higher tariffs were on the horizon.
Lutnick told reporters after a meeting between Trump and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen that the investigation was one of the “key reasons” the EU sought to negotiate a broader trade agreement that would “resolve all things at one time.”
Trump said many companies would be investing in semiconductor manufacturing in the US, including some from Taiwan, to avoid getting hit by new tariffs.
Photo: Reuters
He said Von der Leyen had avoided the pending semiconductor tariffs “in a much better way.”
Trump and Von der Leyen announced a new trade framework agreement that includes across-the-board 15 percent tariffs on EU imports entering the US.
The Trump administration in April said it was investigating whether extensive reliance on foreign imports of pharmaceuticals and semiconductors posed a national security threat.
The probe, being conducted under Section 232 of the US Trade Expansion Act of 1962, could lay the groundwork for new tariffs on imports in both sectors.
The Trump administration has begun separate investigations under the same law into imports of copper and lumber. Earlier probes completed during Trump’s first term formed the basis for 25 percent tariffs rolled out since his return to the White House in January on steel and aluminum, and on the auto industry.
The US relies heavily on chips imported from Taiwan, something former US president Joe Biden sought to reverse during his term by granting billions of dollars in CHIPS and Science Act awards to lure chipmakers to expand production in the US.
ELECTRONICS BOOST: A predicted surge in exports would likely be driven by ICT products, exports of which have soared 84.7 percent from a year earlier, DBS said DBS Bank Ltd (星展銀行) yesterday raised its GDP growth forecast for Taiwan this year to 4 percent from 3 percent, citing robust demand for artificial intelligence (AI)-related exports and accelerated shipment activity, which are expected to offset potential headwinds from US tariffs. “Our GDP growth forecast for 2025 is revised up to 4 percent from 3 percent to reflect front-loaded exports and strong AI demand,” Singapore-based DBS senior economist Ma Tieying (馬鐵英) said in an online briefing. Taiwan’s second-quarter performance beat expectations, with GDP growth likely surpassing 5 percent, driven by a 34.1 percent year-on-year increase in exports, Ma said, citing government
‘REMARKABLE SHOWING’: The economy likely grew 5 percent in the first half of the year, although it would likely taper off significantly, TIER economist Gordon Sun said The Taiwan Institute of Economic Research (TIER) yesterday raised Taiwan’s GDP growth forecast for this year to 3.02 percent, citing robust export-driven expansion in the first half that is likely to give way to a notable slowdown later in the year as the front-loading of global shipments fades. The revised projection marks an upward adjustment of 0.11 percentage points from April’s estimate, driven by a surge in exports and corporate inventory buildup ahead of possible US tariff hikes, TIER economist Gordon Sun (孫明德) told a news conference in Taipei. Taiwan’s economy likely grew more than 5 percent in the first six months
SMART MANUFACTURING: The company aims to have its production close to the market end, but attracting investment is still a challenge, the firm’s president said Delta Electronics Inc (台達電) yesterday said its long-term global production plan would stay unchanged amid geopolitical and tariff policy uncertainties, citing its diversified global deployment. With operations in Taiwan, Thailand, China, India, Europe and the US, Delta follows a “produce at the market end” strategy and bases its production on customer demand, with major site plans unchanged, Delta president Simon Chang (張訓海) said on the sidelines of a company event yesterday. Thailand would remain Delta’s second headquarters, as stated in its first-quarter earnings conference, with its plant there adopting a full smart manufacturing system, Chang said. Thailand is the firm’s second-largest overseas
SUPPLY RESILIENCE: The extra expense would be worth it, as the US firm is diversifying chip sourcing to avert disruptions similar to the one during the pandemic, the CEO said Advanced Micro Devices Inc (AMD) chief executive officer Lisa Su (蘇姿丰) on Wednesday said that the chips her company gets from supplier Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) would cost more when they are produced in TSMC’s Arizona facilities. Compared with similar parts from factories in Taiwan, the US chips would be “more than 5 percent, but less than 20 percent” in terms of higher costs, she said at an artificial intelligence (AI) event in Washington. AMD expects its first chips from TSMC’s Arizona facilities by the end of the year, Su said. The extra expense is worth it, because the company is
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