Japan eyes funding for Taiwan's TSMC to build chip plant

Corporate socialism at its finest, greater than even New York offering hundreds of millions to Amazon for its HQ2 .

TSM has been raking in profits of nearly $20 bil.a year with a roughly 50% profit margin. They of all people don't need taxpayers' money to build a factory. They've got money coming out of their ears!

Despite reduced airmiles with local production, duplicating manufacturing around the world is wasteful and damaging to the environment. In pandering to nationalist concerns, governments will be losing the benefit of scaling factories, standardising products and concentrating production. Building a wall between politics and trade would optimise trade, reduce costs, reduce damage to the environment and protect supply chains. But for that, we would need our leaders to behave like adults and play nicely, rather than using trade as a weapon to beat each other with.

Good for the Kishida Cabinet in lending a hand to a great and friendly nation, Taiwan. More jobs for Japan.

Win-win for Japan and Taiwan, the two great democracies in the region.

GBR48

In pandering to nationalist concerns....

Oh, gimme a break. There's been a global semiconductor shortage, in case you weren't aware, which is weighing on the global recovery. A diversified global supply chain is a good global supply chain.

All those trace minerals and elements being mined near ogasawara going to good use making chips.

Good for the Taiwan alliance.

Good for Japan.

Japan needs this badly. TSM has the money Yes. But to cover the entire cost is still high and not reasonable.

Many other places to pick if you force them to finnance 100% of the project.

Covering half the cost is great in my opinion.

Build it quickly then dismantle all the high tech businesses in Taiwan and move them to Japan. That would anger the CCP because it is not the island it wants it is the superior technology.

Despite reduced airmiles with local production, duplicating manufacturing around the world is wasteful and damaging to the environment.

No. it is called reducing your exposure to loss. Find out what happened to Sanyo after the 2004 Chuetsu Earthquake severely damaged their big semiconductor plant. Unable to deliver product, Sanyo's customers found new suppliers and Sanyo never really recovered from the loss of business, eventually being merged with Panasonic (from which the company sprung in 1947 when old man Matsushita loaned an unused factory to a son in law). What happens to TSMC if China attacks? Even if the Chinese are beaten it's likely their Taiwanese plant will be out of service for a while.

They are already clearing the land for the new fab. I work next door and drive by every day.