Tag - supply-chains

 
 

SUPPLY CHAINS

The People's Liberation Army's Academy of Military Sciences had used an open-source standard known as RISC-V to reduce malfunctions in chips for cloud computing and smart cars.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Feb 5, 2024
China bets on open-source chips as U.S. export controls mount
RISC-V is free to use and has a simpler outline, often leading to more energy-efficient chips, and users can build atop the framework to suit their needs.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.’s new factory in Kikuyo, Kumamoto Prefecture, in May 2023
BUSINESS / Tech / FOCUS
Jan 29, 2024
Can Japan again master semiconductors to relive its glory days?
Competition in the sector is fierce, with many countries pushing to develop their own capabilities and insulate supply chains from geopolitical tensions.
Chinese President Xi Jinping, his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron, and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen meet in Beijing in April last year.
WORLD / Politics
Jan 25, 2024
With China in mind, EU aims to toughen rules on foreign trade and investment
The package includes requiring member states to potentially prevent foreign direct investments that may pose a risk to the bloc’s security.
The SK Hynix factory in Dalian specializes in 3D NAND flash memory used in smartphones and other devices. NAND accounts for an increasing portion of the company’s revenue, around 27% of which comes from China.
BUSINESS / Tech
Jan 23, 2024
U.S. chip battle with China catches South Korea in the crossfire
Korean firms have to balance relations with both countries — one, a source of cutting-edge chipmaking technology and the other, the world's largest chip market.
The rupture of one of the world's busiest shipping routes has exposed the vulnerability of China's export-reliant economy to supply snarls and external demand shocks.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 22, 2024
Red Sea crisis pressures China's exporters as shipping delays mount
Further Red Sea disruptions would pile pressure on a struggling economy already contending with a property crisis and weak consumer demand.
A toy gun is assembled at an Aequs toy manufacturing facility in the city of Belgaum in India.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 16, 2024
Infrastructure hurdles hinder toy manufacturers' shift from China
That other countries struggle to match China for efficiency is limiting firms' efforts to shift to lower cost bases and raising the risk of higher toy prices in the future.
The continued demand for and access to banned Nvidia chips underlines the lack of good alternatives for Chinese firms despite the nascent development of rival products from Huawei and others.
BUSINESS / Tech
Jan 15, 2024
China's military and government acquire Nvidia chips despite ban
The sales by largely unknown Chinese suppliers highlight the difficulties Washington faces.
Workers disassemble vehicle battery packs in a workshop in Dongguan, China.
BUSINESS / Economy
Dec 22, 2023
China bans export of rare earths processing tech over security
China has significantly tightened rules guiding exports of several metals this year, in an escalating battle with the West over control of key minerals.
The Galaxy Leader cargo ship is escorted by Houthi boats after being hijacked in the Red Sea in this photo released on Nov. 20.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 21, 2023
Exporters explore flights to avoid deepening Red Sea bottleneck
Iran-backed Houthi militants in Yemen have stepped up attacks on vessels in the Red Sea since Nov. 19.
A worker inspects semiconductor chips at a chip-packaging plant in Ipoh, Malaysia, in 2021. Malaysia currently accounts for 13% of the global market for semiconductor packaging, assembly and testing.
BUSINESS / Tech
Dec 18, 2023
Chinese firms look to Malaysia to assemble high-end chips
Dearth of advanced chip-packaging services in China leads firms to venture abroad amid U.S. sanctions.
A man holding a child crosses a damaged bridge after Typhoon Doksuri, in Zhuozhou, China, on Aug. 7.
BUSINESS / Markets
Dec 12, 2023
Storm assault on Chinese ports a wake-up call for climate risks
Typhoon Doksuri delivered Beijing's worst flooding in more than 50 years, shuttering factories, collapsing homes and displacing tens of thousands.
The MP Materials rare earth open-pit mine in Mountain Pass, California, in January 2020. Western startups are focusing their attention on the process of refining rare earths — some of them pivoting from mining — that China has spent the past 30 years mastering.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 5, 2023
Western startups seek to break China's grip on rare earths refining
The companies are looking for faster, cleaner and cheaper ways to process the minerals that are critical for billions of electronic devices.
The graphics processing units made by U.S.-based Nvidia dominate the market for artificial intelligence.
BUSINESS
Dec 4, 2023
Nvidia CEO says he will try to prioritize Japan for AI processors
Japan is rushing to rebuild its once world-leading semiconductor infrastructure and catch up on the development of AI technology.
A worker at the Ford F-150 Lightning plant in Dearborn, Michigan in April last year. New government rules will try to shift more production of electric vehicle batteries and the materials that power them to the United States.
BUSINESS
Dec 2, 2023
U.S. sets limits on Chinese content to receive EV tax credits
The guidelines establish a 25% ownership threshold for a company or group to be classified as a foreign entity of concern.
A Walmart worker organizes products for the Christmas season in 2016.
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 30, 2023
Walmart shifts to India and reduces imports from China
The shift shows how the rising cost of importing from China and escalating political tensions are pushing U.S. firms to import more from other countries.
A man walks through the Central Business District on a rainy day, in Beijing.
BUSINESS / Economy
Nov 28, 2023
West's de-risking starts to bite China's prospects
China is outwardly confident about growth despite a global economic slowdown
A Komatsu dump truck at the Oyu Tolgoi copper-gold mine in Khanbogd, the South Gobi desert, Mongolia
BUSINESS / Tech
Nov 14, 2023
China tightens grip on copper, key to world’s energy transition
China’s copper smelting capacity will increase by another 45% by 2027
Germany, which likely plays a key role in determining Europe’s China strategy, unveiled its 64-page strategy on China on July 13.
COMMENTARY / World / Geoeconomic Briefing
Nov 14, 2023
Germany’s China strategy is epoch-making but ambiguous
While attempting to protect its interests, Berlin has had to deal with business circles attempting to avoid damaging ties with Beijing.
China's dominance in the electric vehicle market has prompted the European Union to take action regarding economic security.
COMMENTARY / World / Geoeconomic Briefing
Nov 7, 2023
How electric vehicles became subject to EU economic security
The bloc has felt the pressure from China in the EV market, leading it to take steps to better protect vehicles, batteries and materials.
An assembly engineer works on a lithography system at chipmaker ASML in Veldhoven, Netherlands, on June 16.
COMMENTARY / Japan / Geoeconomic Briefing
Nov 2, 2023
How can the EU strengthen its strategic autonomy regarding chips?
The bloc has felt a sense of crisis over the fact that its growth strategy has been largely dependent on third countries.

Longform

Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?