America Urges Chipmakers to Build Factories in the US

Reuters reports that the Trump administration “is in talks with semiconductor companies about building chip factories in the United States, representatives from two chipmakers said on Sunday.” Intel Corp is in discussions with the United States Department of Defense over improving domestic sources for microelectronics and related technology, Intel spokesman William Moss said in an emailed statement. “Intel is well positioned to work with the U.S. government to operate a U.S.-owned commercial foundry and supply a broad range of secure microelectronics”, the statement added. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co, on the other hand, has been in talks with the U.S. Department of Commerce about building a U.S. factory but said it has not made a final decision yet. “We are actively evaluating all the suitable locations, including in the U.S., but there is no concrete plan yet”, TSMC spokeswoman Nina Kao said in a statement… The Wall Street Journal had also reported that U.S. officials are looking at helping South Korea’s Samsung Electronics, which has a chip factory in Austin, Texas, to expand its contract-manufacturing operations in the United States.