The trade deal signed between the US and Taiwan this week brings Washington’s tariffs on Taiwanese exports in line with those of other big trading partners. But it excludes the core of the two countries’ trade relationship: chips.
The deal builds on Taiwan’s pledge last month that its tech companies would invest $250bn to make chips in the US in exchange for chip tariff exemptions. But the lack of available information on the investment pledge leaves big questions about the way forward for Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, the world’s biggest maker of chips.
Analysts and investors in TSMC, which has become one of the world’s most valuable companies by making chips for the likes of Nvidia and Apple, are trying to work out the implications for its spending commitments and manufacturing footprint.