Money‚ Semiconductors

AI frenzy’s feedback loop stuffs Nvidia

23 Aug 2023

The $1.2 trln semiconductor designer’s second-quarter revenue doubled. Tech giants’ valuations are soaring on AI hype, so naturally companies are pouring money into it, including by buying Nvidia's chips. As long as investors quack for more, Jensen Huang's firm gets fed.

China does Intel a small favor

16 Aug 2023

The chipmaker aborted its $5 bln acquisition of Tower Semiconductor after failing to secure approval from Beijing. The questionable deal was made worse by the target’s struggles. And given the cross-border tech tension, a $350 mln break fee at this stage is a small price to pay.

Tokyo’s $7 bln buyout dials up global chip wars

27 Jun 2023

A state-backed fund’s pricey purchase of semiconductor materials maker JSR will help the Japanese industry shaken by geopolitical jitters build national champions rather than lose to foreign rivals. For customers from Samsung to Taiwan’s TSMC it spells more uncertainty.

Economic stability hangs on US love of BBQ

26 May 2023

The US government is racing to ink a deal to avoid default ahead of the long weekend that marks the start of summer. Agreeing on how to handle the debt ceiling would relieve US creditors and calm markets. The rush will almost certainly leave big problems unfixed.

Counting the cost of the US-China chip war

11 Apr 2023

Six months into Washington’s sweeping export restrictions on semiconductors, Chinese and global chipmakers including TSMC are navigating the fallout. In this Exchange podcast, author Chris Miller talks about the fight for the critical technology and how Beijing may retaliate.

China’s chip suppliers have some growing up to do

14 Dec 2022

Beijing is readying a $144 bln fiscal package aimed at supporting its equipment makers that are woefully behind Dutch and Japanese rivals like ASML. A combination of targeted subsidies and local demand will help. But catching up will be a years-long, if not decades-long, slog.

America throws South Korean chipmakers for a loop

28 Oct 2022

Samsung and SK Hynix dominate the memory market and can adjust output to protect profits as demand falls. But that flexibility will be eroded under Washington's export curbs against China, where the pair have factories. It's an example of the unforeseen effects from the tech war.

Best destination for SoftBank’s Arm IPO is nowhere

7 Oct 2022

Boss Masayoshi Son would prefer to list the chip designer, now probably worth around $20 bln, in the United States. The UK government hopes to lure it to London. Valuations may not differ that much. But cooling chip sales and choppy markets mean SoftBank would be wiser to wait.