US and Taiwan Reach Historic Deal on Tariffs and Investments
The US and Taiwan have signed a landmark agreement to reduce tariffs on Taiwanese goods, while increasing investments in the US semiconductor sector. The deal aims to "drive a massive reshoring of America's semiconductor sector" by lowering tariffs on Taiwanese goods to 15%, down from a 20% reciprocal rate.
As part of the agreement, Taiwanese chip and tech businesses are committed to making at least $250 billion in new, direct investments in the US, with plans to build and expand capacity in areas such as advanced semiconductors and artificial intelligence. The US commerce department has also pledged to provide "credit guarantees of at least $250 billion" to facilitate additional investment by Taiwanese enterprises.
The deal is expected to have a significant impact on Taiwan's semiconductor industry, which is the lifeblood of the global economy. Taiwanese chipmaking titan TSMC, the world's biggest contract maker of microchips used in everything from Apple phones to Nvidia's cutting-edge AI hardware, will be a major beneficiary of the agreement.
According to US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, TSMC has already made significant investments in the US, including purchasing hundreds of acres of land adjacent to its existing property. The deal aims to treat Taiwanese firms building new US chip operations more favorably when it comes to future duties on semiconductors, with the goal of bringing 40% of Taiwan's entire supply chain and production into America.
The agreement comes after months of negotiations between the two countries, which have been seeking ways to boost investments in the US. Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te had pledged to increase defense spending and boost investments in the US as part of his government's efforts to address trade imbalances with the US.
However, not all Taiwanese companies are optimistic about the deal. Chris Wu, a sales director for Taiwanese machine tool maker Litz Hitech Corp, noted that while reducing tariffs is welcome news, the company's single-digit profit margins make it difficult to absorb the tariff for US customers.
The US and Taiwan have signed a landmark agreement to reduce tariffs on Taiwanese goods, while increasing investments in the US semiconductor sector. The deal aims to "drive a massive reshoring of America's semiconductor sector" by lowering tariffs on Taiwanese goods to 15%, down from a 20% reciprocal rate.
As part of the agreement, Taiwanese chip and tech businesses are committed to making at least $250 billion in new, direct investments in the US, with plans to build and expand capacity in areas such as advanced semiconductors and artificial intelligence. The US commerce department has also pledged to provide "credit guarantees of at least $250 billion" to facilitate additional investment by Taiwanese enterprises.
The deal is expected to have a significant impact on Taiwan's semiconductor industry, which is the lifeblood of the global economy. Taiwanese chipmaking titan TSMC, the world's biggest contract maker of microchips used in everything from Apple phones to Nvidia's cutting-edge AI hardware, will be a major beneficiary of the agreement.
According to US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, TSMC has already made significant investments in the US, including purchasing hundreds of acres of land adjacent to its existing property. The deal aims to treat Taiwanese firms building new US chip operations more favorably when it comes to future duties on semiconductors, with the goal of bringing 40% of Taiwan's entire supply chain and production into America.
The agreement comes after months of negotiations between the two countries, which have been seeking ways to boost investments in the US. Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te had pledged to increase defense spending and boost investments in the US as part of his government's efforts to address trade imbalances with the US.
However, not all Taiwanese companies are optimistic about the deal. Chris Wu, a sales director for Taiwanese machine tool maker Litz Hitech Corp, noted that while reducing tariffs is welcome news, the company's single-digit profit margins make it difficult to absorb the tariff for US customers.