The key semiconductor sector is not immune to tensions between China and the United States with the question of Taiwan in the background.
While the war in Ukraine has somewhat eclipsed the trade tensions between China and the United States, the latter are nevertheless stronger than ever and the semiconductor market in a way crystallizes these hegemonic impulses.
A semi-conductor heavyweight
In this context, the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. – better known by the acronym TSMC – is of crucial importance. World number one in semiconductors, it holds more than 50% of the market ahead of South Korea’s Samsung and America’s Intel.
To believe the information of Bloomberg, TSMC would be in the crosshairs of some Chinese economists. Thus, Chen Wenling, chief economist at the Chinese Center for International Economic Exchanges, indicates without ambiguity, that it is necessary ” enter TSMC “.
Chen Wenling justifies his statement by stating that TSMC is all the more important in the current context of ” industrial chain and supply chain reconstruction “before adding that the company” speed up the transfer [de technologies] to the United States to build six factories “.
Only bullying?
If the company has already indicated on several occasions that it has no factory project in Europe, TSMC does have several projects underway in the United States. The objective is to increase its production capacities, but also to shorten logistics that have been undermined in recent months.
Beyond TSMC alone, Chen Wenling’s remarks concern Taiwan as a whole. Thus, the Chief Economist explains that ” if the United States and the West impose destructive sanctions on China like the sanctions on Russia, we must get Taiwan back “.
Chen Wenling thus approaches the classic rhetoric of mainland China, which considers Taiwan as its 23rd province. Its “threat” seems to be there above all to underline the strategic importance of the semiconductor sector. A threat to which TSMC did not react while only one American factory – out of the six mentioned by the media – was confirmed by the Taiwanese company.
On the same subject :
TSMC: 3 nm at the end of the year and 2 nm for 2024-2025
Source : Bloomberg
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