Limitations such as TSMC·UMC, investment expansion
Difficult to increase production early even at the needs of each country
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Corporation. yunhap news
The Nippon Geizai Shimbun reported from Taipei, Taiwan on the 25th, that the governments of the United States, Germany, and Japan have requested Taiwanese authorities to cooperate with semiconductors to increase production as semiconductor supplies, mainly for automobiles, have become scarce.
According to a newspaper, a Taiwanese official said, “There is a shortage of semiconductors for automobiles worldwide, and since the end of last year, we have been asked (Taiwan to increase semiconductor supply) through diplomatic channels.”
Taiwan’s Ministry of Economy, which is responsible for the semiconductor industry, has already requested more production from major semiconductor companies, and the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Corporation (TSMC), which has the highest market share in the global semiconductor consignment production field, or Hualien Electronics (UMC), the fourth largest in the industry. It urged them to hurry to expand production of automotive semiconductors. In this regard, TSMC’s head of public relations said, “It is our company’s top priority to respond to the demand for automotive semiconductors (which is currently the most scarce in the world).”
Since the fall of last year due to the Corona 19 incident, the semiconductor shortage has become apparent. With the proliferation of remote video work, power management semiconductors used in personal computers (PCs) first became scarce. As the Chinese automobile market recovered, vehicle semiconductors also suffered a shortage. In addition, the shortage of semiconductors has become more serious as the US sanctions the China’s largest semiconductor consignment manufacturing company, Zhongxin International Semiconductor Manufacturing Corporation (SMIC). The semiconductors produced by SMIC are not high in technology, but are installed in large quantities in automobiles and home appliances.
Even at the request of each country, semiconductor production is not expected to increase early. Automotive semiconductors have low profits, and if demand decreases, the price may drop quickly. Therefore, there is a possibility of increasing investment to increase production and leading to losses. A major semiconductor company recently attempted to increase semiconductor prices by 10-20% in the automobile industry, but the newspaper predicted that the supply shortage will not be resolved early.
The semiconductor shortage is also affecting the production of global automakers. Germany’s Volkswagen has announced production adjustments in China, North America and Europe. Ford of the United States has also announced the shutdown of some plants in North America. Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Securities predicted production cuts of around 1.5 million vehicles worldwide from January to June.
Tokyo = Correspondent Cheong-jung Kim [email protected]
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