Tag - economic-security

 
 

ECONOMIC SECURITY

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.’s new factory in Kikuyo, Kumamoto Prefecture, in May 2023
BUSINESS / Tech / FOCUS
Jan 29, 2024
Can Japan again master semiconductors to relive its glory days?
Competition in the sector is fierce, with many countries pushing to develop their own capabilities and insulate supply chains from geopolitical tensions.
Chinese President Xi Jinping, his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron, and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen meet in Beijing in April last year.
WORLD / Politics
Jan 25, 2024
With China in mind, EU aims to toughen rules on foreign trade and investment
The package includes requiring member states to potentially prevent foreign direct investments that may pose a risk to the bloc’s security.
The SK Hynix factory in Dalian specializes in 3D NAND flash memory used in smartphones and other devices. NAND accounts for an increasing portion of the company’s revenue, around 27% of which comes from China.
BUSINESS / Tech
Jan 23, 2024
U.S. chip battle with China catches South Korea in the crossfire
Korean firms have to balance relations with both countries — one, a source of cutting-edge chipmaking technology and the other, the world's largest chip market.
TSMC had said it would make 3nm chips at the second factory, which is expected to be more advanced than the first in Arizona, but on Thursday, it said that incentives from the U.S. government would help determine how advanced the tech inside will be.
BUSINESS / Tech
Jan 19, 2024
TSMC’s second factory in Arizona delayed as U.S. grants remain in flux
Site will start operations only in 2027 or 2028, instead of the chipmaker's earlier guidance of 2026.
Li Qiang at the World Economic Forum on Tuesday
WORLD / Politics
Jan 17, 2024
In Davos, Chinese premier takes aim at trade 'barriers'
Li's remarks came as the World Economic Forum's 54th annual conference is preoccupied with a slew of global risks, including wars in Ukraine and Gaza.
The ASML headquarters and factory in Veldhoven, Netherlands
WORLD / Politics
Jan 2, 2024
U.S. pushed Dutch tech company to block Chinese sales
ASML had licenses to ship three top-of-the-line deep ultraviolet lithography machines to Chinese firms until January, when new Dutch restrictions took full effect.
An employee inspects integrated circuit boards at a factory in Suzhou, China.
BUSINESS
Dec 22, 2023
U.S. to scrutinize Chinese chipmakers as Biden mulls tariffs
Over 100 companies in various sectors to be surveyed on their procurement and use of legacy chips
Workers disassemble vehicle battery packs in a workshop in Dongguan, China.
BUSINESS / Economy
Dec 22, 2023
China bans export of rare earths processing tech over security
China has significantly tightened rules guiding exports of several metals this year, in an escalating battle with the West over control of key minerals.
A U.S. Steel coke works in Clairton, Pennsylvania
EDITORIALS
Dec 22, 2023
A steel deal that’s good for Japan and the U.S.
Nippon Steel’s announcement that it plans to purchase U.S. Steel has triggered an uproar in the United States.
The U.S. Steel Clairton Coke Works in Clairton, Pennsylvania. U.S. President Joe Biden's top economic advisor said the purchase of the firm by Nippon Steel deserves serious scrutiny, in the latest sign of political pressure over the deal.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 22, 2023
Nippon-U.S. Steel deal deserves 'serious scrutiny,' White House says
The White House said it views a strong domestic steel industry as vital to the U.S. economy and national security.
A worker inspects semiconductor chips at a chip-packaging plant in Ipoh, Malaysia, in 2021. Malaysia currently accounts for 13% of the global market for semiconductor packaging, assembly and testing.
BUSINESS / Tech
Dec 18, 2023
Chinese firms look to Malaysia to assemble high-end chips
Dearth of advanced chip-packaging services in China leads firms to venture abroad amid U.S. sanctions.
U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng meet for talks in Beijing on Aug. 29.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 12, 2023
The Washington-Beijing tech war is just getting started
U.S. Commerce Secretary Raimondo emphasizes the need to prevent China from accessing cutting-edge technology, citing national defense concerns.
The MP Materials rare earth open-pit mine in Mountain Pass, California, in January 2020. Western startups are focusing their attention on the process of refining rare earths — some of them pivoting from mining — that China has spent the past 30 years mastering.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 5, 2023
Western startups seek to break China's grip on rare earths refining
The companies are looking for faster, cleaner and cheaper ways to process the minerals that are critical for billions of electronic devices.
The graphics processing units made by U.S.-based Nvidia dominate the market for artificial intelligence.
BUSINESS
Dec 4, 2023
Nvidia CEO says he will try to prioritize Japan for AI processors
Japan is rushing to rebuild its once world-leading semiconductor infrastructure and catch up on the development of AI technology.
A worker at the Ford F-150 Lightning plant in Dearborn, Michigan in April last year. New government rules will try to shift more production of electric vehicle batteries and the materials that power them to the United States.
BUSINESS
Dec 2, 2023
U.S. sets limits on Chinese content to receive EV tax credits
The guidelines establish a 25% ownership threshold for a company or group to be classified as a foreign entity of concern.
A man walks through the Central Business District on a rainy day, in Beijing.
BUSINESS / Economy
Nov 28, 2023
West's de-risking starts to bite China's prospects
China is outwardly confident about growth despite a global economic slowdown
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks during a news conference at May’s Group of Seven summit in Hiroshima.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Nov 28, 2023
Canada's path to pragmatic Indo-Pacific engagement
As part of Canada’s Indo-Pacific pivot, we have already seen its relations and cooperation with Japan deepen.
Up until very recently, the business of packaging semiconductors — encasing chips in materials that both protect them and connect them to the electronic device they’re part of — was, at best, an afterthought for the industry.
WORLD / Politics
Nov 22, 2023
A new front is opening up in the U.S.-China conflict over chips
The process of packaging semiconductors is increasingly seen as the "secret sauce" — a path toward achieving higher performance.
A Komatsu dump truck at the Oyu Tolgoi copper-gold mine in Khanbogd, the South Gobi desert, Mongolia
BUSINESS / Tech
Nov 14, 2023
China tightens grip on copper, key to world’s energy transition
China’s copper smelting capacity will increase by another 45% by 2027
Germany, which likely plays a key role in determining Europe’s China strategy, unveiled its 64-page strategy on China on July 13.
COMMENTARY / World / Geoeconomic Briefing
Nov 14, 2023
Germany’s China strategy is epoch-making but ambiguous
While attempting to protect its interests, Berlin has had to deal with business circles attempting to avoid damaging ties with Beijing.

Longform

Visitors walk past Sou Fujimoto's Grand Ring, which has been recognized as the largest wooden structure in the world.
Can a World Expo still matter? Japan is about to find out.