US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick’s call for a “50-50” split in semiconductor production could shift Taiwan's “silicon shield” toward a shared Taiwan-US resilience, a semiconductor industry expert said yesterday.
Lutnick on Sunday told NewsNation that he is pushing Taiwan to adopt a “50-50” plan, in which Taiwan and the US each produce 50 percent of the chips used by the US market.
The concept of the “silicon shield” arose because Taiwan has long held more than 90 percent of global advanced chip capacity, which could help deter a Chinese invasion, Taiwan Institute of Economic Research researcher Arisa Liu (劉佩真) said.
Photo: I-Hwa Cheng, AFP
However, the US has said that sufficient domestic chip production is needed to safeguard Taiwan, warning that if Taiwan’s output were disrupted by a conflict, Washington would lack the chips essential for military and economic operations, Liu said.
This position indicates that the US is effectively redefining the “silicon shield” from being “Taiwan only” to a shared Taiwan-US resilience, she said.
The US sees achieving a certain level of domestic chip self-sufficiency, or at least a “50-50” shared production arrangement, as essential to shouldering its protective responsibilities without concern, Liu said.
Washington could pressure Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) to speed up its construction of US fabs and expand investment in the US, she said, adding that other supply chain companies could face similar pressures.
TSMC is investing US$65 billion to build three advanced wafer fabs in Arizona, the first of which began commercial production late last year.
In March, TSMC pledged to invest an additional US$100 billion in Arizona over the next few years to build three more fabs, two chip packaging plants and one research and development (R&D) center.
For Taiwan, the main concern should be safeguarding its technological edge and intellectual property while balancing domestic R&D needs with the demand for talent at overseas fabs, Liu said.
Since being elected, US President Donald Trump has pushed to get more semiconductor manufacturing in the US, threatening huge tariffs on chip-importing companies that do not manufacture all of the chips they use in the US.
Separately, the Ministry of Economic Affairs yesterday said that Taiwan’s trade talks with the US are being coordinated by the Executive Yuan and are ongoing, without providing any details.
Asked about Lutnick’s remarks, the ministry said that it cannot comment on the US' position, but the matter would be handled cautiously.
The Taoyuan Flight Attendants’ Union yesterday vowed to protest at the EVA Air Marathon on Sunday next week should EVA Airway Corp’s management continue to ignore the union’s petition to change rules on employees’ leave of absence system, after a flight attendant reportedly died after working on a long-haul flight while ill. The case has generated public discussion over whether taking personal or sick leave should affect a worker’s performance review. Several union members yesterday protested at the Legislative Yuan, holding white flowers and placards, while shouting: “Life is priceless; requesting leave is not a crime.” “The union is scheduled to meet with
‘UNITED FRONT’ RHETORIC: China’s TAO also plans to hold weekly, instead of biweekly, news conferences because it wants to control the cross-strait discourse, an expert said China’s plan to expand its single-entry visa-on-arrival service to Taiwanese would be of limited interest to Taiwanese and is a feeble attempt by Chinese administrators to demonstrate that they are doing something, the Mainland Affairs Council said yesterday. China’s Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO) spokesman Chen Binhua (陳斌華) said the program aims to facilitate travel to China for Taiwanese compatriots, regardless of whether they are arriving via direct flights or are entering mainland China through Hong Kong, Macau or other countries, and they would be able to apply for a single-entry visa-on-arrival at all eligible entry points in China. The policy aims
Taipei, New Taipei City, Keelung and Taoyuan would issue a decision at 8pm on whether to cancel work and school tomorrow due to forecasted heavy rain, Keelung Mayor Hsieh Kuo-liang (謝國樑) said today. Hsieh told reporters that absent some pressing reason, the four northern cities would announce the decision jointly at 8pm. Keelung is expected to receive between 300mm and 490mm of rain in the period from 2pm today through 2pm tomorrow, Central Weather Administration data showed. Keelung City Government regulations stipulate that school and work can be canceled if rain totals in mountainous or low-elevation areas are forecast to exceed 350mm in
EVA Airways president Sun Chia-ming (孫嘉明) and other senior executives yesterday bowed in apology over the death of a flight attendant, saying the company has begun improving its health-reporting, review and work coordination mechanisms. “We promise to handle this matter with the utmost responsibility to ensure safer and healthier working conditions for all EVA Air employees,” Sun said. The flight attendant, a woman surnamed Sun (孫), died on Friday last week of undisclosed causes shortly after returning from a work assignment in Milan, Italy, the airline said. Chinese-language media reported that the woman fell ill working on a Taipei-to-Milan flight on Sept. 22
RSS